Milk Cooling Plant in Kinyogoga is Launched

Milk Reception at Kinyogoga Dairy in Uganda

With support from the East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) Project Members of Kinyogoga Livestock farmers’ Cooperative Society Ltd launched their 5000ltr milk chilling plant on 20^th February 2010. The plant was officially launched by the Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, assisted by other distinguished guests and officials from Nakaseke district and the East Africa Dairy Development Project. Also among the key guests was Mr. Partick Nalere, the Country Director of Heifer Project International (HPI) ­Uganda and Mr. Steve Denne, the Chief Operations Officer (COO) of HPI headquarters in Little Rock, Akansas, USA.

About 2,000 dairy farmers are expected to benefit from the milk chilling tank that is being used to bulk, cool and hold milk for pickup by processors. Since its installation in December 2009, the milk chilling plant has helped to reduce milk spoilage, enhanced milk supply at competitive prices and provided ready milk market thereby increasing the economic benefits including stabilized incomes to the dairy farmers in kinyogoga.

Previously the beneficiary farmers were selling milk individually but with the formation of a farmers’ dairy cooperative in November 2008 and acquisition and installation of the milk cooler, milk collection has increased significantly to 2,500ltrs daily within the first year of its operation.

“Many projects are implemented in this country and sometimes we do not see a real impact. But EADD’s approach has enabled us to organize ourselves and purchase this cooling tank. It proves that even poor farmers can succeed, you just need to make a lot of efforts and the results will come along,” said Mr. Kamomo, chairperson of the cooperative.

EADD will continue to work together with the management and members of the co-operative to expand it into a dairy hub by strengthening other affordable farm-related services such as artificial insemination (AI) services that have already been put in place and bringing in more farm-related businesses like Village banks, Agrovet services and Fodder stores, milk transport services. This will further boost the economic activities in the area.

Kinyogoga Livestock farmers’ Cooperative Society Ltd is a dairy farmers’ cooperative is located in Kinyogoga Sub-County, Nakaseke District, in central Uganda. It covers 5 parishes; Kinyogoga, Buwana, Kyarushesha, Rwooma and Kakona.

The cooperative was started in September 2008 with a few dairy farmers who had a vision of creating a cooperative to address the milk marketing challenges in the area. Their major objective was to address poverty through collective marketing of dairy products. The dairy farmers started working with EADD and with help and

guidance from this project; the cooperative was legally registered in November 2008.

The current major activities of the Cooperative are milk bulking,

chilling and marketing mainly selling to Sameer Agricultural Livestock Ltd (SALL) milk processor. Also a number of hub services are being offered including training farmers in dairy production technologies, providing animal health services and improved breeding through AI services.