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Edgar Vhera
Agriculture Specialist Writer
DAIRY farmers have surpassed expectations by realising 74 percent of the 2024 milk target of 115 million litres, three months ahead of schedule, underlining their commitment to reducing reliance on imports.
Statistics released by the Dairy Services Unit (DSU) yesterday showed that milk production for the period January to September rose from 71 914 536 litres in 2023 to 85 056 390 in the comparable time this year.
A monthly comparison for September shows a 10 percent increase in milk production from 8 869 624 litres last year to 9 801 378 in 2024. Monthly figures for this year have eclipsed those for the corresponding months in 2023 due to increased productivity and cows in milk.
The intake of milk by processors remains at 92 percent with producers retailing the remaining eight percent on their own.
Zimbabwe Association of Dairy Farmers (ZADF) national chairman, Mr Edward Warambwa said this achievement showed farmers’ resilience and enhanced knowledge in dairy production.
“Although we have experienced a decline in milk production in the month of September, we are still on course to achieving the annual target of 115 million litres this year. The decrease in output can be attributed to deteriorating pasture condition and limited water availability due to the El Nino-induced drought,” the ZADF chair said.
He lamented the effects the drought had on profitability of dairy production, which squeezed income due to elevated costs of production against a stagnant output selling price.
“There are limited stocks for raw material needed in feed processing, which is pushing up the price of feed. The sluggish milk price against increasing costs of production compounded by erratic power supplies also contributed to the reduction in milk volumes,” Mr Warambwa noted.
The peak lean month of October is also expected to have diminished volumes of milk production chiefly attributed to poor or unavailability of grazing pastures and water.
Output for the month of October is likely to decline as well while production will most likely improve in the months of November and December, as the rainy season sets in, he explained.
Meanwhile, records with ZADF show that raw milk production leaped 51 percent from 66 million litres in 2017 to 99, 82 last year. The milk in cow population also rose by 122 percent from 17 968 to 39 811 in 2023.
The national dairy herd also grew by 13, 4 percent from 53 250 in 2022 to 60 398 in 2023.
This literally shows that the industry has surpassed the 2025 target of a total dairy herd of 60 000 and 38 000 milking cows.
In the 2023 budget, Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister, Professor Mthuli Ncube introduced a gradual substitution of dairy product imports through increased local production.
He also called on dairy processors to simultaneously increase their uptake of raw milk from 70 million litres to 130 million per annum by 2025.
The country requires about 131 million of milk for self-sufficiency and this looks achievable by end of next year due to the predicted good 2024/25 season, the import and distribution of dairy cattle with improved animal genetics, improved forages for animal nutrition and improved animal breeding through artificial insemination (AI), among others.
Online Reporter