Engro Foods launches Pakistan’s first Dairy Hub

[LahoreEstate]

KARACHI: Milk demand is growing by 15 percent while supply has been increasing by only 3 to 4 percent in the country.

Managing Director Tetra Pak Pakistan, Azhar Ali Syed at the launching ceremony of the first Dairy Hub of Pakistan in Kassowal, district Sahiwal said Pakistan’s dairy sector is at an important crossroad.

This supply gap is going to increase to 3.6 billion litres by 2015 and to address the challenges in the dairy sector, a viable solution is the establishment of a Dairy Hub, he added. The aim of the program is to improve the productivity of animals in rural areas by providing skills, know-how and related agri-services to dairy farmers.

Engro Foods Limited, in collaboration with Tetra Pak Pakistan, the world’s leading food processing and packaging solutions company launched Pakistan’s first Dairy Hub.

Dairy Hub, a Community Dairy Development Programme (CDDP) is a one-herd concept that organises and develops smallholder farmers’ milk production.

The Dairy Hub CDDP has enlisted the support of several key players in the dairy industry besides the Livestock and Dairy Development Board (LDDB).

Dairy hub is one viable solution to meet the growing demands of the dairy industry besides providing agri-services, trainings and helping farmers by educating them on animal feeding and diseases.

This would lead to improved quality and quantity of raw milk, improved market access, an efficient value chain, enhanced smallholder competitiveness, improved livelihoods in subsistence agriculture, increased employment in agriculture and enhanced skills of farmers. The basic objective of this pioneering initiative is to help the farmers in improving productivity and efficiency, said Sarfaraz Rehman, CEO Engro Foods Limited. He said, “We are determined to promote milk production in terms of quality and quantity through the development of the livestock business.”

In August, plans were underway to establish a Dairy Hub in Mian Channu with the cooperation of Nestlé Pakistan Ltd.

This will be followed by a Dairy Hub established in Kasur in collaboration with LDDB. Some 6,000 smallholders and dairy farmers will benefit directly or indirectly through these three Dairy Hubs leading to increase in productivity of about 90,000 animals.

Ali Syed gave away milking machines and silage machines to selected registered farmers and the company is also supporting the farmers by establishing a veterinary hospital and a community training hall which are under construction. staff report

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