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Business Reporter
Zimbabwe’s milk production increased by 5 percent in the first quarter of 2023, to 22,62 million litres compared to the same period last year, official data shows, as support by the Government to dairy farmers continues to bear fruit.
The dairy industry in Zimbabwe has been facing various challenges, including high production costs, low productivity and limited access to finance and markets.
The Government, together with other stakeholders, have made efforts to improve raw milk production through initiatives such as training farmers on best practices and providing them with better genetics for their dairy herds.
Latest figures from the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development’s dairy services department show that raw milk intake by processors rose by 8 percent to 20,76 million litres in the first quarter of 2023 from 19,26 million litres in the same period in 2022.
On the other hand, retailed raw milk by producers fell by 15 percent to 1,86 million litres in the period under review from 2,19 million litres in the comparative period in 2022.
In March 2023, milk output stood at 7,51 million litres, representing a 2,3 percent increase from the same period last year. The monthly output was 8 percent more than the previous month’s (February 2023) output of 6,95 million litres.
But the March 2023 output was down 8 percent compared to January 2023 output of 8,14 million, which is the highest output so far this year.
Zimbabwe’s milk production rose 15 percent to 91,31 million litres in 2022, compared to 79,6 million litres in 2021. At current production, output may fall short of the 120-130 million litres estimated national raw milk requirement.
The Government has continued to provide financial and other forms of support to dairy farmers in order to drive the growth of the dairy industry.
“The increase is to be achieved through promoting on-farm feed production and formulation in order to augment nutrition and reduce costs, and also to promote improved efficiency at farm level,” said Addmore Waniwa, an officer with the dairy services department.
The efficient utilisation of funding availed by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development from proceeds of the 5 percent levy on imported dairy products is also helping to boost local milk production towards sustainability and self-sufficiency.
Incentives have also been extended to promote dairy farming through initiatives such as Presidential and Command Silage schemes as well as subsidised semen through Transforming Zimbabwe’s Dairy Value Chain for the Future (TranZDVC) project. The country’s raw monthly milk requirement stands at about 10 million litres per year. To cover the shortage, local raw milk supplies are being supplemented with imports. The national dairy herd grew by 11,3 percent from 47 845 dairy cows in 2021 to 53 250 dairy cows in 2022, according to a report on the second-round crop, livestock and fisheries assessment.
Online Reporter