47-year-old Humphrey Nyembezhi Mayonda who lives in Mukobela Chiefdom of Namwala District, is a proud owner of 72 improved dairy animals with 22 of these giving him a daily supply of between 200 to 400 litres of milk per day which he supplies to Parmalat. This earns him an income of about K47,000 per month.
‘’For me, dairy farming is a gold mine which comes with a lot of benefits,” he emphasised. The rapid growth of Mayonda’s enterprise was triggered by the establishment of five milk collection centres (MCC) in different communities within Namawala District by Parmalat in 2013, with Musika support.
In addition to increasing access to an improved market, the support from Musika also provided for knowledge transfer and provision of extension services aimed at Namwala dairy farmer invests in improved dairy breeds to maximise profits improving the productivity of smallholder herds, resulting in increased household income. Being a predominantly beef production area, farmers in Namwala heavily depend on their beef animals for milk whose yields were generally low. Initially, Parmalat would collect only 300 litres of milk every three days from Namwala milk collection centre, so in 2016 the company almost shut it down. But things have changed for the better with farmers like Mayonda,” explained Kande Machila, a milk attendant at the MCC.
Mayonda started his dairy business in 2013, by investing in three in-calf Friesian cows with each cow producing about 25 litres of milk per day and earning him an income of K9,000 per month. Seeing the benefits, he expanded the herd to the Mayonda and his wife with their herd of dairy animals current 72 improved dairy animals which includes Friesian crosses. He currently employs nine farm workers
who are supervised by his two wives that are in charge of the milking and general operations of the farm. He has plans to invest in 1,500 litre milk tank and employ a qualified manager to run his dairy farming enterprise. ‘’I am urging my fellow farmers to invest into diary animals if they want to be successful and have more milk throughout the year,” Mayonda proudly pointed-out. The MCC intervention in Namwala has increased demand for Artificial Insemination (AI) services as more and more farmers recognise its potential to transform their cattle into high milk producing herds. Part of the income raised from milk is also being invested into AI for beef animals, which was cheaper that buying a pure bred bull.
