Communal farmers informed what dairy production entails

Five cattle farmers from communal areas were recently taken through a one-day blitz training session to show them what opportunities commercial dairy production may hold for communal dairies.

The training was done at the state-of-the-art dairy Superfarm in Mariental, owned by Namibia Dairies. This was only the first phase of training and will be follow up by more sessions as part of the mild producer’s dairy farmer training project.

According to the Director: Agri-Business at Namibia Dairies, Borney Britz, the farmers were taken on a farm tour by one of the managers, Neville Hembapu who explained the basic requirements and processes involved in the day to day operations of the Superfarm.

Said Britz: “The tour educated the farmers on the critical aspects relating to calf and heifer rearing and how it differs in some instances from beef cows. Other topics covered the daily fodder requirements and the importance of quality fodder and sufficient water. Then certain basic aspects regarding health, diseases and treatment of cows were explained followed by a session on herd growth, animal handling and daily herd management.

From the cows, the focus shifted to the industry when the basic principles and processes in the production of milk at a commercial scale were explained.

“The day provided us with the opportunity to share some knowledge on the dairy industry in particular dairy farming and we trust that the interest, passion and commitment shown by the farmers will serve as a starting point to further build our local dairy industry” said Britz.

Namibia Dairies is a subsidiary of the Ohlthaver & List Group.