Listen up, Mzansi’s aspiring dairy farmers! KPR Conference and Trading is hosting a three-day dairy farming event to shine a light on the dairy industry and provide small-scale and new farmers with everything they need to tackle the industry successfully.
While it is common knowledge that farming is a difficult vocation, dairy farming in particular is a difficult industry to break into. High input costs, barely-checked international competition, and the pressure of climate change are all taking a toll on the industry, making it difficult for small-scale or up-and-coming farmers to gain entry into it.
Kireshni Naiker, an experienced animal scientist and agricultural consultant, is the programme coordinator for the event, which takes place from 22 to 24 August 2022. The conference is a passion project of hers, and something she feels addresses a very wide gap in the industry.
“The dairy industry is quite a technical industry and therefore it requires a certain level of expertise. [Running a dairy operation] is a demanding enterprise that needs one’s attention at all times,” Naiker says.
“It is highly capital intensive, in terms of natural capital, financial capital, human capital, and technical skills. The products are also highly perishable and need up-to-date certificates of legal compliance. Additionally, there is a feeling that dairy does not create many job opportunities as compared to other agricultural enterprises.”
Naiker says that nearly all of the country’s livestock industries have programmes in place to grow them, but very little has been done for smaller farmers in the dairy industry.
“There needs to be more initiatives from the government sector to encourage the growth and development of small-scale dairy farmers.”
Though she acknowledges the difficult circumstances in the industry, she feels like change needs to start somewhere.
“As a country, I think that we are failing our farmers. They are in dire need of assistance in terms of information and knowledge, and this is where greatness begins.”
Farming for sustainability and profitability
Taking place at the Ascot Conference Centre in Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal, the three-day convention is entitled “A guide to dairy farming in SA: Farming for sustainability and profitability”.
The speaker line-up is made up of highly experienced dairy industry and agriculture professionals. It includes KZN’s MEC of agriculture and rural development, Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi, transformation manager at Milk South Africa, Godfrey Rathogwa, and Dr Mphaphathi Masindi, a researcher at the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), among others.
“This is an interactive seminar and it’s carefully designed to educate participants on the recent development in dairy farming and management. You’re going to learn all you need to know about the dairy cow and how to go about running a successful dairy operation,” Naiker says.
The experts will be covering a range of topics over the three days – from the historical to case studies, to the practical, with some of the discussions including transformation in the industry, the economic aspects of dairy farming, and the reproductive cycles of cows.
A highlight of the conference is a farm tour at one of the province’s top dairy farms, where attendees will get first-hand exposure to the operations of a dairy farm, and experts share recent developments that will equip new entrants to farm more efficiently and effectively.
Knowledge is power
“We also have funding institutions and how to access funding. By attending a seminar, you will receive first-hand knowledge from various speakers that have years of practical dairy farming experience.”
Knowledge sharing in any industry is extremely important, and Naiker emphasises that it is especially difficult to come by in the dairy industry. This is why a conference of this nature is so important.
“If you’re a commercial farmer, you can just hire a consultant and pay them monthly, but that fee is quite a lot. It’s about R26 000 upwards. Small-scale farmers don’t have access to that, and I haven’t seen any initiatives to bridge that gap between commercial farmers and small-scale farmers.”
To her, bridging this knowledge gap is the key to transforming the industry. By lining up so many experienced experts, participants have a real chance of gaining the critical knowledge needed for success.
“I believe strongly that the transformation of the dairy industry is needed, and this is possible through training programmes and the transfer of knowledge. I want to give small-scale and emerging farmers hope again.”
For details on how to attend the event, email admin@kprtrading.co.za, call 0721869863, or 0729718934, or go to www.kprtrading.co.za.
ALSO READ: What to look for when formulating dairy cow rations
Sign up for Farmer’s Inside Track: Join our exclusive platform for new entrants into farming and agri-business, with newsletters and podcasts.
