Global Dairy Intelligence
Turning fragmented dairy research into structured, understandable intelligence.
LactoGo separates published findings from interpretation, evidence strength, and research gaps — so you can see what the science actually says, including what remains uncertain.
~5.2B
people worldwide with reduced lactose digestion after infancy
500M+
pet dogs & cats in the US, EU and China alone — incl. ~108M cats and ~90M dogs in Europe. Most adult cats and dogs produce less lactase after weaning.
HealthforAnimalsFEDIAF Facts & Figures 2025VetAgro Sup Animal Welfare Chair
Where the estimates come from
Hover a highlighted country for its estimate
Estimated people with reduced lactose digestion, by country
- China~1.2B
- India~829M
- United States~174M
- Pakistan~144M
- Brazil~136M
- Vietnam~99M
- Japan~90M
- Iran~80M
- Thailand~62M
- Mexico~62M
- South Korea~52M
- Myanmar~50M
- Colombia~42M
- Italy~41M
- Afghanistan~34M
- Peru~32M
- Uzbekistan~32M
- Malaysia~30M
- Taiwan~21M
- Cambodia~17M
- Sri Lanka~16M
- Kazakhstan~15M
- Chile~12M
- Papua New Guinea~9M
- Mongolia~3M
- Uruguay~2M
- Sweden~949K
Population × published country estimate: Anguita-Ruiz et al. 2020World Bank
Human Lactose Intelligence
What the research says about lactose and people
Research suggests that most adults with lactose malabsorption tolerate up to approximately 12 g of lactose in a single dose with no or minor symptoms. Individual tolerance varies. Tolerance improves when lactose is consumed with food and spread across meals.
Research note · Malabsorption vs. intolerance
Lactose malabsorption is the reduced ability to digest lactose. Lactose intolerance is the experience of symptoms after consuming lactose. Many people who malabsorb lactose do not report symptoms. The ~12 g figure is a research-supported reference point, not a universal tolerance threshold.
Evidence records
Veterinary Intelligence
Dogs, cats, and lactose
Most adult dogs and cats produce less lactase after weaning. The evidence about lactose digestion in pets is limited and emerging — it should not be converted into universal feeding recommendations.
There is currently no universally validated safe lactose limit for dogs or cats. Available research provides evidence about lactose digestion and experimental exposure, but these findings should not be converted into universal feeding recommendations. Veterinary intelligence is informational and not a substitute for veterinary advice.
Dogs
Adult dogs generally produce less lactase after weaning. Feeding-trial evidence shows substantial individual variation — some dogs tolerated higher lactose doses while others developed loose stools at lower amounts. These are experimental exposure findings, not feeding recommendations.
Cats
Adult cats produce less lactase after weaning. Cow's milk is not nutritionally necessary for cats and may cause digestive upset in sensitive individuals. No validated safe lactose limit has been established.
Methodology
How LactoGo builds Global Intelligence
Identify relevant scientific research
Survey peer-reviewed and authoritative sources across nutrition, gastroenterology, food science, and veterinary literature.
Classify population / species
Determine whether the evidence concerns humans, dogs, cats, or other species — and which population group.
Extract study design and population
Record methodology, sample size, and the population studied.
Extract lactose exposure / dose
Capture the lactose amount, form, and context of exposure.
Identify measured outcomes
Note what was actually measured — symptoms, digestion, prevalence, consumption.
Assess evidence strength
Rate the evidence as strong, emerging/limited, veterinary, or insufficient.
Separate findings from interpretation
Distinguish what the study measured from what it might mean in context.
Surface uncertainty and research gaps
Make clear what the evidence does not establish and where more research is needed.
LactoGo does not convert experimental doses into universal safety recommendations.
Why this matters
Scientific evidence is often fragmented across nutrition, gastroenterology, food science and veterinary literature. Global Intelligence structures this evidence so users can understand what is known, what is uncertain, and where further research is needed.
Roadmap
Global Intelligence roadmap
What's live today, what we're building, and what comes next. We don't claim future features already exist.
- Human Lactose Intelligence
- Lactose dose-response evidence
- Dairy product intelligence
- Population research
- Veterinary Intelligence
- Food Composition Intelligence
- Regional Dairy Intelligence
- Evidence Quality Scoring
- Evidence Graph
- Research Partner Portal
- Structured Research Dataset
- Research/API Access
Coming soon · Future capability
Evidence Graph
The long-term goal is to connect structured food, exposure, individual context, and research evidence into a traceable graph. This is a conceptual view of that direction — not a completed feature.
Conceptual relationship — under development. Not yet available in the app.
Long-term opportunity
From content to evidence infrastructure
LactoGo's long-term opportunity is to structure fragmented dairy and lactose evidence into machine-readable, traceable intelligence that can support:
Consumer education
Personalized food experiences
Research collaboration
Clinical / dietitian collaboration
Veterinary research
Food industry intelligence
Future research datasets
Interested in contributing research, validating evidence, or collaborating with LactoGo?
Get in touch