Animal rights activists took to the streets of Valletta on Saturday in a theatrical demonstration against commercial dairy production.  

Three female activists from Animal Liberation Malta could be seen wearing pumps attached to their breasts and holding up placards with slogans including “dairy is scary”, ”milk is not human(e)” and "not your mother, not your milk”. 

The protest took place at the Triton Fountain just outside the city gates, where activists demonstrated wearing chains, numbered ear tags and were smeared in fake blood. 

The pumps worn by the female activists were connected by pipes to containers of what appeared to be milk, in symbolic reference to the commercial milking of cows and other animals used to produce dairy products.

In a statement, Animal Liberation Malta said the “entire dairy industry is based on the exploitation of the reproduction system,” describing the collection of semen from bulls and subsequent artificial insemination of female cows “sexual abuse” and “rape”.

Activists pointed to the slaughter of male calves and repeated impregnation of female cows as evidence of the “cycle of exploitation” they said defined the dairy industry.

Attacking the tactics of the industry, Animal Liberation Malta said that while milk consumption was in “sharp decline globally, the dairy industry keeps growing by constantly pushing subsidised milk to be included in more and more products, even those that traditionally did not include any dairy.”

Noting that “humans are the only animals that continuously consume milk from other animals and continue to consume milk throughout their lives,” the group urged the public to consider dairy-free alternatives.

“Animal Liberation Malta highlights the fact that there is a compassionate, cruelty-free alternative to animal milk that is plant-based. Furthermore, plant-based milk is more environmentally friendly and natural to drink than milk from other species.”

Activists from fellow animal rights group Anonymous for the Voiceless also took part in the protest.