Milk revolution: Reviving the dairy sector

The Minister for Business, Enterprise and Cooperatives, Soomilduth Bholah wants to boost milk production in Mauritius. In this context, he has sought the expertise of Asia Africa Rural Development Organisation (AARDO), based in New Delhi, India, to restructure the milk sector in Mauritius. News on Sunday looks at the main constraints facing the sector. Thirty years ago, Mauritius was producing as many as 25 million litres of fresh milk. Over the years, production fell drastically to around 5 million litres today. The country has to import 95% of the milk we consume. The minister strongly believes in the potential of the sector which will benefit from the expertise of Professor Jabir Ali, from the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow, India. The latter, sent by the Asia Africa Rural Development Organisation (AARDO), will make a comprehensive study of the sector and see how to reorganise it. He will then make his recommendations to the ministry. Indeed this is not the first time that the dairy sector receives special attention. For many years now, small cow breeders in Mauritius have desperately been trying to make themselves heard. The sector faces a lot of difficulties. Despite numerous measures introduced in recent years, and various reports and plans produced by the Ministry of Agriculture, the sector has failed to take off as expected. It is not ideas that are lacking, but rather a lack of will and inaction. This latest visit of an expert offers a ray of hope for the future of this vital component of the agro industry. Constraints Several factors explain the decline of a sector that could potentially be a model in the Mauritian agriculture. First, it’s the low level of mechanisation that hinders development, as the livestock segment still remains an activity carried out through traditional means. The majority of producers are small family businesses without any plan for expansion or major project development. They are only surviving. Then there are financial constraints as farmers are unable to inject funds to invest further. Lack of manpower is another discouraging factor. It is increasingly difficult to find labour for the livestock sector. Young people are not interested in this activity and children of farmers are reluctant to take over the family business of their parents.

Cattle feed

With heavy rains becoming very common in Mauritius, there is no longer shortage of grass. Alas, there is no industrial collection of fodder, an activity that can become a lucrative business. The cultivation of fodder is also a segment to consider opening up, with the possibility of introducing new highly nutritious grass species and develop long-term storage capacity. Regarding cattle feed, cooperative societies should be encouraged to develop regional factories with raw materials imported from friendly countries like India and Pakistan (rice or wheat residues), thus stimulating the market for higher competitiveness. An appeal should be made to foreign investors seeking permanent residence to invest in the agribusiness sector. Production costs Breeding is an activity that entails huge costs. Having a proper environment requires a significant investment in terms of land and buildings. It also requires necessary equipment, such as cow milking machine, fodder chipper, etc. Storing fresh milk is expensive and transportation needs special refrigerated vehicles. But the biggest constraint is the high cost of animal feed. In Mauritius, we have only two feed plants that control the whole market since the closure of the government plant at Richelieu. As the raw materials are imported, the final selling price depends world market price, exchange rate of the dollar and the cost of freight. Limited market Mauritians are fond of powdered milk. While the minister for Business, Enterprise and Cooperatives wants to boost milk production, it must be emphasized that quality fresh local milk hardly attracts consumers. Our young people are not accustomed to local fresh milk. Unfortunately, unlike in other countries, in Mauritius the authorities do not undertake national campaigns in favour of fresh milk. Earlier this year, Jamaica started a national campaign to encourage its population to drink local milk. The absence of any form of ‘marketing’ of fresh milk deprives farmers of a viable and sustainable market. The lack of an effective distribution system throughout the island is also a major obstacle to the sale of fresh milk in Mauritius. Fresh milk also has to compete with a number of imported brands of powdered milk reinforced by constant advertising. Veterinary services Although the government provides free veterinary services to small farmers, the service is sometimes inadequate due to a lack of veterinarians. At one point in time, the government even envisaged to recruit foreign veterinarians to support the sector. The availability of drugs is also an issue, because very often there is a shortage of stock and medical drugs are very expensive in the private sector. Major investments The dairy sector has seen major investments in recent years, with projects such as Golden Cream Ltd and SKC Surat. The first operates an automated dairy farm in Salazie while SKC Surat runs a farm near Rose-Belle. Aadicon Biotechnologies Ltd, an Indian company, has established a biotechnology park in Piton du Milieu. The firm provides an agro-biotechnology service, cattle breeding and molecular technology; furthermore, besides the production of organic fertilisers, it also specialises in the production of high breed bovine semen for export. Inefficiency Many breeders are regrouped into cooperative societies, but unfortunately the cooperative spirit is rarely present. It is common for farmers to operate individually even amidst these cooperatives. This results in inefficient management, diseconomies of scale, duplication giving rise to additional costs, low mechanisation, no collective marketing or storage sharing, etc. Cooperatives are often managed by the farmers themselves and they do not hire management professionals. But it is also impossible to pay professionals because the financial situation is often precarious. Inadequate infrastructure Livestock breeding requires appropriate infrastructure: land, buildings, pasture, etc. The unavailability of land affects the smooth running of activities. With massive real estate development occurring across the country and increasingly making use of agricultural lands, it is difficult to obtain an EIA permit for large livestock farms if they are situated too close to built-up areas. It is equally difficult to set up farms far from development zones if the region is not connected to the electricity or water network. The establishment of modern dairy farms with improved cow breeds, coupled with a zero-grazing system, requires huge investments, hence the need to regroup farmers into associations or cooperatives that perform and that are supported by professionals.

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How to boost the sector

The import bill of milk and other dairy products is estimated at over Rs 3 billion per year. If Mauritius manages to produce a high volume of milk, we will save foreign exchange and create opportunities for our agricultural entrepreneurs. Reviving the dairy sector is not rocket science. We must first create a sustainable local milk market. It is up to the authorities to conduct a nationwide awareness campaign on the benefits of fresh milk to encourage people to prefer fresh milk over powdered milk. To create opportunities for small milk producers, the government must buy fresh milk for consumption in ministries and other public agencies, hospitals and prisons. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"17231","attributes":{"class":"media-image aligncenter wp-image-29193 size-full","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","width":"450","height":"338","alt":""}}]] Eventually, the Ministry of Education should consider introducing a “milk feeding scheme” in schools to encourage children to drink locally produced fresh milk. This initiation to fresh milk will create a future generation of fresh milk consumers. The Ministry of Social Integration could also offer “fresh milk vouchers” to the poor so they can get fresh milk. The Ministry of Tourism in turn could encourage hotels to turn to small farmers to stock up on milk. The country has a lot of unemployed people who have not reached the level of CPE or SC. These people should be trained for the agricultural sector. Dairy farmers should be allowed to hire experienced foreign workers. It is important to develop a distribution network for fresh milk, another entrepreneurial niche. Imagine an efficient delivery system whereby milk and bread is delivered to our doorsteps every morning, saving thousands of motorists and motorcyclists a daily trip to the local bakery, thus freeing up our road and reducing fuel consumption, and ultimately, pollution!

Budget measures

With the next Budget coming soon, now is the opportune time for the government to come up with exciting and innovative measures to really boost the dairy sector. New incentives must be given to foreign investors to lure them to the agribusiness sector and to encourage partnerships with local entrepreneurs.

Bilateral cooperation

The authorities have brought an expert from Lucknow, India, for a study and assessment of the dairy sector in Mauritius. Through bilateral cooperation, especially with countries like India and Pakistan who fare well in dairy activities, Mauritius will be able to draw inspiration on their success and benefit from the transfer of expertise, skills and technology. For example, our policy makers and our farmers should visit the Indian town of Anand, Gujarat which is considered as the milk capital of India. This is where the various cooperative movements have been able to consolidate themselves and create a huge dairy industry that is recognised worldwide. Mauritius must also cooperate with the Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers (RABDF) for new ideas and best practices. Inviting experts to Mauritius will be a futile exercise if the recommendations are not implemented and the willingness to achieve is not there.

Entrepreneurship opportunities

Apart from milk production on farms, other lucrative activities include pasteurization and packaging, marketing and distribution and other value added milk products, cheese production, cultivation of fodder, by products of cow rearing such as manure, etc.