Vietnam to Double Milk Output to 300,000 Tons by 2010

Vietnam has set a target to produce more than 300,000 tons of fresh milk by 2010, doubling the present output to meet about 40 per cent of the local demand.

The target was set because Vietnamese milk processors are facing a shortage of local material supplies.

The case of the Vietnam Milk Joint Stock Company (Vinamilk) is an example. Vietnam's biggest milk processor, which has eight processing factories, has to import about 80 per cent of its material supplies annually, namely fresh milk, formula milk and vegetable oil.

In other words, Vinamilk has to rely on imports, which results in high production costs. It has to pay VND4,200-4,500 (26.7-28.7 US cents) for one liter of fresh milk imported from Thailand and China, compared with VND3,500-3,800 (22.3-24.2 US cents) for one liter supplied locally. A similar situation can be observed with other milk processors.

Under a plan on the development of the local milk industry recently approved by the Ministry of Industry, the number of milk processing factories will be increased while operational establishments will be expanded. This will lead to an increase in material supplies for the industry.

Therefore, it is imperative for the agriculture sector to speed up the implementation of the 2001 Government decision to develop the dairy farm industry.

Hoang Kim Giao, vice chairman of the Agriculture Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that rises in the fresh milk price around the world would create momentum to develop the country's dairy farm industry.

"Farmers will find raising dairy cows a profitable trade if milk prices go up," the official said.

The agriculture sector has introduced a series of measures to improve the quality of milk as well as to increase the volume of material supplies. It will pay more attention to the process of selecting high yield and high quality dairy cows, providing farmers with advanced techniques in dairy farming, and developing quality meadows and infrastructure facilities for raising dairy cows.

Since 2001, Vietnam has imported more than 10,000 cows over the years. Northern Tuyen Quang province, central Thanh Hoa province and Ho Chi Minh City have gained encouraging results from expanding imported cowherds.

Apart from high import prices, it usually takes time for imported cows to adapt to Vietnam's weather. The sector, therefore, has to crossbreed hybrid species that are able to adapt. About 80 per cent of the country's cows are hybrids.

The sector has also cooperated with Belgian and Japanese experts to effectively expand the milk cowherd.

Vietnam now has 100,000 dairy cows yielding 150,000 tons of milk a year.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has proposed that the government should encourage the establishment of milk production cooperatives and an association of milk cow farmers, and the synchronous development of dairy farms and processing factories. It also recommended the Government promulgate incentives to attract local and foreign investment in developing the milk industry.

The ministry also proposed that the government uses 30 per cent of milk import tariffs collection to support the program on dairy development.

VNA