A calf is born with a hemoglobin level of about 12 g/ml. A mean normal value of hemoglobin for bovines is approximately the same at 11.5-13 g/ml.

In milk-fed veal production, sources of iron are removed from the calves' environment. Their crates are made of wood to prevent the licking of metal bars. The calves are chained at the neck to prevent them from turning around and licking their own urine, which contains trace amounts of iron. The barn typically has a water purifier that filters out iron that could get into the calves' milk replacer. Thus, the veal producer can control the level of iron entering his calves' feed.

“Special-fed” veal producers supplement the feed with small amounts of iron to keep the calves from becoming completely anemic. However, if the hemoglobin levels are not getting as low as the producer would desire, The Special Fed Veal Production Guide advises producers to give their calves zero dietary iron. The guide stipulates that the calves' hemoglobin levels should be brought to 7.5-8 g/ml before they are marketed. This level is clearly well below the amount needed to avoid anemia, and the guide states, “With this approach, an occasional case of clinical anemia may develop.” Strangely enough, the industry admits that “Iron is required for normal hemoglobin formation and is a component of other body systems that use oxygen. The requirement for iron is relatively high in the calf because of the expansion of the total blood volume that occurs during growth.”

While it is recognized that calves have above-average dietary iron requirements, veal calves are intentionally denied adequate iron in order to induce borderline anemia and a pale-colored “carcass.”