The ManicaPost
Wimbainashe Zhakata Post Correspondent
STAKEHOLDERS in the dairy sector on Wednesday converged in Nyanga to witness the launch of the dairy value chain which is meant to positively transform and up milk production in the country.
The launch coincided with the 6th annual general meeting (AGM) of Zimbabwe Association of Dairy Farmers that was facilitated and sponsored by the European Union, Zimbabwe Agricultural Growth Programme (ZAGP) and dairy consortium partners.
Agriculture Minister Retired Chief Air Marshal Perrance Shiri said the dairy industry had been having serious challenges since 1990.
“The Zimbabwe dairy has been having challenges since 1990. In 1980, there were 106,000 dairy cattle and the national herd increased to 122,000 by 1988\89 season.
“However, the population of the dairy herd has been on a decline over the past 30 years,” said Minister Shiri.
Despite the challenges, Minister Shiri said the volume of milk production had been on the rise over the past 10 years.
“National milk volumes have been increasing since 2009. In 2018, there was an increase in milk intake to 75.4 million litres, up from 66 million in 2017,” he said.
About 48 percent of the milk in Zimbabwe is imported while the rest comes from dairy farmers and small holder farmers.
“Commercial dairy farmers are contributing 50 percent of processed milk, while two percent comes from small holder farmers, and the balance of 48 percent comes from milk imports,” said Minister Shiri.
ZAGP project coordinator Dr Edson Chifamba said the country is making progress to exceed 110 million litres, from the current 75.5 million litres by 2020.
“Our mandate is to increase milk production to 110 million litres by 2022 so that we at least cover our national demand,” he said.
The Minister of State for Manicaland Provincial Affairs Dr Ellen Gwaradzimba said the province produces 30 percent of the milk in the country.
She said Cyclone Idai disaster contributed a lot to low milk production since the affected areas produced most of the milk in the province.
“Manicaland produces two million litres of milk per month which is about 30 percent of the national milk production, and the province has a potential to improve or even double the figure.
“A number of people’s livestock were not spared through the disaster.
“We applaud Manicaland dairy farmers for their resilience and working together to sustain the dairy enterprise during the cyclone period, “ said the minister.
