From Maduabuchi Nmeribeh, Kano
Kano state government, through its planned 200 Milk Collection Centers (MCCs), is set to produce and supply over 50, 000 liters of milk daily.
With Kano’s latest upgrade and potentials, Nigeria’s dairy requirement is not far from being met.
The State Project Coordinator, Kano Agro Pastoral Development Project, (KSADP), Alhaji Ibrahim Garba Muhammad, announced this during a meeting with Livestock stakeholders in Kano, on Thursday.
,The meeting was designed to identify sites for the project, to be executed by KSADP.
He explained that based on available statistics, each of the MCCs would pool at least 250 liters each day, adding that the quantity would increase significantly, when his project’s proposed artificial insemination scheme takes off soon.
According to him, “this will further be reinforced by our intended intervention in small and large scale fodder production schemes, which will provide more pasture for the cattle, which will lead to increased dairy production.
“In this regard, we have awarded consultancy for the design and supervision of the MCCs. The aim is to assist in improving nutrition through consumption of milk and to curtail huge economic loss due to milk spoilage.
“If you bring the MCCs closer to communities, the Fulani milk maids will not need to transport the milk over long distances, with the attendant risks, to sell their products. That is why we are looking for appropriate sites to build the centers.”
Alhaji Ibrahim further stated that each MCC would include cooling facilities, testing kits, a tank and a fodder bank among other things, stressing that the centers would be managed by a committee involving relevant stakeholders in the communities, for sustainability.
Impressed by the justification for the construction of the MCCs, the state branch chairman, Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, Alhaji Husaini Umar, donated his farm at ‘Yan Rutu, Dawakin Tofa local government for free, for one of the centers to be constructed.
Meanwhile, participants at the meeting have identified about 287 locations across the 44 Local Government Areas of Kano, for possible construction of the Milk Collection Centers.
The stakeholders, however, recommended that communities should collaborate with local and state authorities, to provide safe locations for the projects, in view of security challenges in some parts of the country.
They promised to put heads together to ensure that the projects not only see the light of the day but are also sustained beyond the lifespan of the Kano State Agro Pastoral Development Project.
