Dairy output to rise to 1.1m metric tons by 2015

Akinwumi Adesina, the minister of agriculture and rural development, said government would increase the national dairy production from its current 469, 000 metric tons to 1.1 million metric tons by attaining an average milk yield per lactating cow from below 500 litres to 2,000 litres per lactation by 2015.

Adesina gave the assurance over the weekend at the opening session of a one-day training workshop on hygienic milk collection techniques and data collection for dairy value chain desk officers of the 36 states of the federation held at the Livestock Training Centre in Kaduna.

Represented by Leo Nyam, the North-West zonal director, the minister revealed that the training was to sensitise the desk officers on the activities of the value chain, hygienic milk collection techniques and data collection as well as their roles toward the achievement of Growth Enhancement Support (GES) scheme of the dairy value chain.