“Magic” cow produces milk that may be easier to digest

A cow named Magic at the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum has distinguished herself from the rest of the herd – by testing positive for a special form of beta casein protein that may make her milk easier to digest.

Magic — one of two Guernsey cows in a herd of 60 — was tested earlier this year by the Canadian Guernsey Association.

“It’s a gene test – you just pull hair and you can test the DNA,” explains Jennifer Russell, a herdsperson for the museum, which is a working farm in Ottawa. Russell says the test results revealed that Magic is producing what’s known in the dairy industry as “A2 milk,” which has been enjoying an increased popularity in Canada and other parts of the world.

According to a paper about A2 milk — published by the Canadian Dairy Network (CDN) in 2016 — the genotype of dairy animals is expressed as either A1A1, A1A2, or A2A2, with each copy of the beta casein allele leading to the production of the corresponding type of beta casein. A2A2 cows are the only ones that can be considered producers of “A2 milk” since A1A2 cows will produce milk with a mixture of A1 and A2 beta casein.

Rob Forster, a fieldman for the Canadian Guernsey Association, explains that the majority of cows produce either A1A1 or A1A2 – which is what most consumers are buying in stores. Guernsey cows are one of the breeds with a higher frequency of the A2A2 genome.

Forster says the Canadian Guernsey Association considers this an advantage because there’s a growing belief that A2 milk may be easier for people to digest.

“Right now, a lot of people envision ‘milk is milk is milk’ which really isn’t the case,” says Forster. He adds he’s heard anecdotal accounts of A2 milk improving human health conditions including Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), skin rashes, and hayfever.