Dairy breeder herd to be expanded via imports

THE National Dairy Authority (NDA) said on Tuesday that it is looking to expand the herd at its stock farms ahead of plans to boost overall dairy animal numbers.

“The NDA will be aggressively importing cattle for our stock farms for the herd to multiply under the care of NDA. The acclimatized offspring of these dairy cattle will be the ones to be distributed to our dairy farmers,” Administrator Marcus Antonius T. Andaya said in a statement.

Mr. Andaya added that five new stock farms are set to be completed by the end of the year with operations set to launch by early 2025. They will be located in Nueva Ecija, Bohol, Bukidnon, Cotabato and Agusan Del Sur.

The NDA said that the new stock farms will eventually help increase the domestic dairy herd to about 80,000 head.

He said that the NDA is also focusing on increasing milk yields and providing training for farmers.

The NDA aims to increase dairy production to 80 million liters per year by 2028, equivalent to about 5% of milk demand. The agency operates in 68 provinces, assisting almost 2,500 farmers and 1,324 dairy organizations.

The Philippines can meet less than 1% of its milk demand through domestic production, with the remainder needing to be imported.

Dairy imports are forecast to increase 7.3% in 2024 to 2.49 million metric tons of milk equivalent, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

In the first half, dairy imports rose 12.9% to 1.65 million metric tons. The Philippines typically imports skim milk powder, followed by other milk powders and ready-to-drink milk. — Adrian H. Halili