By Cathy Maulidi:
Over the weekend, the Ministry of Agriculture and key stakeholders in the dairy production sector convened to brainstorm on strategies for increasing milk production.
This collaborative effort was aimed at bridging the supply gap created by the recent ban on fresh milk imports.
The meeting, organised by the Transforming Agriculture Through Diversification and Entrepreneurship (Trade) Programme, a supporter of dairy farmers, brought together various actors within the milk industry.
These included farmers themselves, relevant organisations and representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Trade.
Speaking at the event, the Director of Animal Health and Livestock Development in the Ministry of Agriculture, Julius Chulu, said current local production meets only 60 percent of the demand and that farmers must capitalise on the import ban to significantly increase their output and satisfy national needs.
According to Chulu, all stakeholders must recognise and leverage opportunities presented by the import ban to effectively address the existing supply deficit.
“This meeting focuses on the opportunities within the country’s dairy industry following the ban on milk imports. We are exploring ways of maximising output from our livestock sector to meet the local demand for milk production. The gathering of all these key players is, therefore, very important,” Chulu said.
Trade Programme Value Chain and Agribusiness Specialist Linda Magombo Munthali noted that the meeting facilitated a strategic re-evaluation for farmers on how to best utilise the import ban to enhance production and meet market demands.
“We have discussed how each player can coordinate effectively to ensure that Malawian consumers receive quality and sufficient dairy products. Malawi possesses the potential to bridge the gap created by the ban but we need collaborative efforts in certain areas to achieve this.
“Therefore, we, as the Trade Programme, are actively promoting the dairy value chain. This proactive approach is crucial for the industry to meet its set goals. We recognise the need to explore both short-term and long-term strategies to address the supply gap. Currently, our support includes improving infrastructure within the dairy value chain, such as establishing cooling centres for farmers,” she said.
The Director of Malawi Dairy Industries Bob Dzombe informed journalists last week that industry players were prepared to scale up production within six months, assuring consumers that the supply gap will not be significantly felt.
“The influx of foreign milk has posed challenges. We lack information on their production costs, resulting in very cheap imported milk that makes local products less competitive.
“However, with the ban, we are confident that the local industry’s production capacity can adequately supply the domestic market. While approximately 45 percent of the supply was imported, those facing capacity constraints will work on scaling up, a process that could take between six months and one year
