Dendairy is set to pour in US$3,5 million in 2021 towards enhancing stockfeed production and new product development initiatives.Dendairy currently produces Maas (fermented milk), UHT (ultra high temperature) milk, UHT flavoured milk, yoghurts, ice cream, and fruit juices. The company has been exporting mainly to Mozambique.Company director, Daryl Archibald, told The Herald Finance and Business that Dendairy had developed over 1 000 hectares of irrigated lands in Kwekwe with each hectare dedicated to lucerne capable of producing 25 tonnes of dry matter per year.He said this beats all commercial crop yields and has a dissolvable protein comparable to stock feeds allowing for a high degree of substitution.“Of the 1 000 ha, 650ha is available to grow to supply Dendairy farmers. This lucerne will start being supplied in the first half of 2022 to Dendairy farmers, giving them a very profitable conversion from feed to milk,” he said.Mr Archibald added that by providing year round affordable feed, small holder farmers can focus on animal health, breeding and feed to milk conversion and become dairy experts rather than a jack of all trades.Recently, the Government challenged players in the Dairy sector to complement its efforts aimed at reducing feed stock costs, which negatively impact viability as it accounts for over 65 percent of total milk production. Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement Minister Dr Anxious Masuka, said the Government has robust plans for growing the dairy sector, anchored lower production costs. He said the Government plans to increase farmers’ business viability through increased own farm feed production and feed formulation and providing support for irrigation, mechanisation and pasture development.
