Nigeria seeks to cut dairy imports through Ikun Dairy Farm
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Tribune Online
Illustrative image · mhd_photos · Pexels · Licence PexelsPromasidor Nigeria's investment in Ikun Dairy Farm is strengthening local milk production and cattle farming in Nigeria. The country spends around $1.5 billion a year on dairy imports, while its partnership with Ekiti State is expected to increase domestic capacity, according to Tribune Online.
Ikun Dairy Farm, operated by Promasidor Nigeria Limited in partnership with the Ekiti State Government, now produces more than 6,000 litres of fresh milk per day on a site covering more than 500 hectares and housing over 700 cattle, according to Tribune Online. The farm's development is expected to help reduce Nigeria's dairy product imports, which cost the country around $1.5 billion a year, said Livestock Development Minister Idi Mukhtar Maiha.
Promasidor initially invested $5 million in the farm, whose partnership with Ekiti State was formalised in 2019 after several years of underuse of the facility established in 1983. More than 160 pregnant heifers were sold to farmers this year, according to Yomi Adexson, the group's chief financial officer and chairman of Ikun Dairy Farm, to increase dairy production capacity beyond the site.
The farm had lost around 185 imported cattle at the beginning of its operations because of difficulties adapting to local environmental conditions. Investments in breeding, reproduction and animal health management have since produced several generations of cattle better adapted to Nigeria's climate, according to Tribune Online.
During a recent working visit, Idi Mukhtar Maiha praised the progress made in local livestock farming, animal health and milk production. The minister presented these results as a contribution to the federal government's efforts to strengthen Nigeria's livestock sector.
