August 1, 2023

Thailand's raw milk quantity declines due to break period and livestock feed costs

Thailand's Deputy Director-General of the Department of Livestock Development said that the country's current raw milk quantity has decreased by 400 tonnes per day compared to the previous year's average, due to farmers entering milking break periods and the high costs of livestock feed ingredients, impacting milk production, Pattaya Mail reported.

The average daily raw milk in May 2023 was approximately 2,900 tonnes, representing a 12% decrease compared to the previous year's average of 3,300 tonnes per day.

The situation is expected as most cattle are nearing calving from June to September, prompting farmers to take a milking break during this period.

In response to the challenges faced by dairy farmers, the Department of Livestock Development is taking measures to expand and promote the use of animal feed that helps reduce production costs.

One of the initiatives includes supporting small-scale dairy farmers to grow roughage such as grass as feed instead of purchasing processed feed, which accounts for 60-70% of the total production cost. The department has set a target of 20,000 acres nationwide for growing grass and is providing support to farmers with grass seeds to meet this goal.

Another project being implemented is the promotion of Dry TMR (Total Mixed Ration) feed, a complete mixed feed produced by blending roughage and concentrated feed in appropriate proportions.

Testing in ten provinces across all regions has shown that it reduces production costs by approximately 10%, and the department plans to expand this project to benefit more farmers.

-      Pattaya Mail