Indonesian Farmers Set Sights On NZ Cows
NEW ZEALAND - Indonesian dairy farmers say importing New Zealand cows could help stop their milk production slump from slipping further.
19 April 2007
2 minute read
A delegation of 15 farmers from the PKIS Sekar Tanjung Co-operative in East Java are in the Waikato this week to learn about the New Zealand dairy industry's business practices and farming technology. They have met livestock exporters, visited Fonterra, Innovation Park and several Waikato dairy farms.
Marketing manager Fuad Ardiansyah said the demand for milk in Indonesia was growing, but the industry had suffered from a shortage of milk product.
"In my province we have around 150,000 cows being milked a day," he said.
"In the last two years our productivity has declined, so we are trying to increase (that) with importing cows from New Zealand."
Mr Ardiansyah said their industry produced 30 per cent of Indonesia's milk needs, with the rest imported. He said environmental and social factors had caused the decline. "We have suffered from a longer dry season in the last few years and (with feeding supplements) the food intake has become expensive. (Also) young people are moving to the city for a better lifestyle."
He said they had struggled to change the ways of traditional farming practices. The delegation was impressed by New Zealand's high level of productivity compared with the size of the country. He said they were surprised by the depth of knowledge farmers here had about their industry and the level of training on offer.
Source: Waikato Times
