By Almot Maqolo
The country has seen a rise in milk supply over the years, but demand has also grown, so the gap between the two is getting wider. The demand for milk is anticipated to rise even further in the next few years as a result of population expansion and an increase in per capita consumption.
Milk production has been on an upward trend since the start of the year. Dairy farmers in Zimbabwe produced 43.35 million litres in the first six months of 2022, an 18% rise on last year’s corresponding period, official data shows.
In H1 2021, the southern African nation’s milk output stood at 36.78 million litres. The government has continued to provide money and other sorts of support since it is particularly interested in the expansion of the dairy industry.
Latest figures from the Ministry of Agriculture’s dairy services department show that milk intake by processors rose 17% to 38.96 million liters from 33.42 million liters in the comparative period. Retailed milk by producers increased by 30% to 4.38 million liters from 3.36 million liters in the same period last year.
In June 2022, milk production surged 11.83% to 7.35 million litres from 6.58 million litres in the prior period. The volume, however, climbed 1% compared to the 7.31 million litres produced in May 2022. Ernest Muzorewa, national chairman of the Zimbabwe Association of Dairy Farmers (ZADF), told this publication that: “main drivers have been improved nutrition and increased herd from imported heifers and good management as result of farmer training programmes.”
The ZADF will begin a local heifer breeding program on July 19, 2022, as a step to improve the genetic quality of the country’s milking herd and supplement current efforts to cut back on the importation of heifers. On the other hand, through the Ministry of Land, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development, the association is advocating for critical stakeholders and the technical team of the association to examine milk pricing.
Milk output in April this year stood at 7.21 million litres and March production came in higher at 7.34 million litres. The February output of 6.73 million liters represents a 9% decrease from the 7.38 million liters produced in January. So far, January has produced the most. The average monthly milk production for the period under review stood at 7.22 million litres, against 6.13 million litres in the comparable period last year.
The southern African nation requires 120 million litres annually. Dairy farmers produced 79.6 million litres in 2021, representing a 4% increase from the 76.69 million litres produced in 2020. On a monthly basis, it requires about 10 million litres. The excess demand is being met through powdered milk imports, mainly from neighboring South Africa, by processors under a duty-free quota system to approved importers. In 2021 alone, Zimbabwe imported milk powder worth over US$33 million.
According to ZADF, the local dairy industry employs about 30 000 people directly in the dairy value chain and another 13 000 indirectly, making a major contribution to the GDP of the nation. ZADF Strategic Plan (2018 to 2022) aims to raise production levels to 130 million litres per annum starting this year. However, about US$75 million is required to fully revitalize the sector.
Statistics show that the total national dairy herd increased by 20% from 39 856 in 2020 to 47 825 in 2021. Accordingly, the dairy milking herd surged by 33% from 19 000 in 2020 to 25 212 cows in 2021
