RAJSHAHI, Nov 24: Dairy farmers in the district have become baffled due to cut in sales of milk.
According to sources, dairy farms have been impacted severely due to cut in demand of milk, high fodder price and wholesale-off. The overall sale of milk has declined.
Milk companies are no longer making in-field purchases of milk. Disarray is crippling their surviving capacities. To overcome the impact of coronavirus, farm owners are facing setback. In this backdrop, if incentive is not provided, they will get to the road.
It is urgent to save the farms in order to meet the milk demand and make supply. So, the farmers demanded, there is no alternative to incentive.
According to the data of District Livestock Department, the annual milk demand in the district is 2.603 lakh metric tons. The annual production of milk is 3.787 MT. The production is higher by 1.185 MT against the demand. For the current month, the milk production target is 00.317 MT. So far, 00.348 MT has been produced. So the monthly production target has been reached.
As a result, if the additional milk cannot be sold outside, the farms will count losses. At the same time, milk processing companies have also been in crisis due to their sale cut amid corona.
Mehedi Hasan is a dairy farm owner in Kuthibari area of Puthia Upazila. In 2003, he had raised his farm at Tk 25 lakh. At present, there are 12 cows in his farm. He gets 45 to 50 litres of milk from five cows daily. His family would run well on the daily profit. Amid corona, his sale has declined. But the milk production is continuing usually. He has fallen in disarray.
According to him, the daily expenditure of his farm is Tk 2,300 to 2,500. But during lockdown, there was none to take milk even at free of cost.
"We are incurring huge losses. We are facing setback for price hike fodder," he pointed out.
He informed, to manage the farm expenditures he sold cows worth Tk 2 lakh during the lockdown.
"I am bearing the brunt of it till now. Corona has turned down everything," he added.
If government incentive is not provided, protecting the farm will be impossible, he maintained.
Naznin Nahar of the same area said, the production volume before corona is continuing yet now. But the expenditure is increasing for increased fodder price, she pointed out.
During the lockdown, milk was sold at throwaway price, which made her much loss incurring, she added.
District Livestock Officer Dr Md Ismail Haque said, maid corona, many things have been standstill. Despite no production fall of milk, there was no option for sales. As a result, marginal farmers suffered losses, he acknowledged.
Asked about incentive, he said, to provide incentive, marginal farmers of nine upazilas in the district are being listed. The list will be sent to the ministry. Incentives will be given according to the approved list, he assured.
