Fodder first in Assam’s dairy strategy

Economic problems often bring opportunities and this holds true in respect of dairy farming in Assam. The growing milk demand has led to growth in dairy farming in the state but chronic shortage of locally produced fodder put a spanner in achieving desired production level. Dependence on outside supply for nearly 95% of fodder demand keeps the milk prices volatile. As fodder accounts for about 60% to 70% of total milk production cost, the increase in fodder prices at source markets and rising transportation cost compel dairy farmers to increase prices of milk sold to consumers and milk cooperatives. Rising prices of milk directly impact per capita consumption of milk in the state which remains far below the requirement of 300 ml per day recommended by the Indian Council of Medical Research for balanced nutrition. Increasing fodder production in the state can help stabilize prices of milk and milk products enabling consumers to gradually increase consumption. Increased production of fodder will also create more livelihoods in its cultivation, processing and supply value chain besides helping dairy farmers reduce production cost and allowing them to invest the savings for boosting milk production. Flooding of Guwahati’s markets with several milk brands is indicative of the growing demand for milk in the state capital which local dairy farmers and milk cooperative can tap, provided they can overcome the shortage of fodder at affordable prices. One of thekey bottlenecks in availability of cattle fodder is the lack of awareness among traditional livestock rearers about the requirement of quality fodder for increasing quality milk production which leave them dependent on natural green vegetation and rice straw. Assam Fodder Mission seeks to address this problem by increasing area under fodder cultivation to overcome the problem of chronic shortage of quality green fodder for cross-bred cattle. Dairy entrepreneurs recognising the supply-side constraints giving rise a growing market of fodder in the state is important to supplement the government-supported fodder mission. A government-funded mission will always have fixed targets in terms of area covered, number of beneficiaries etc., depending on availability of fund allocated towards it by the central or the state governments and cannot be expected to cover all the areas across the state. The achievements made under such a mission, however, plays a crucial role in creating a ripple effect about the economic opportunities that can be tapped even by individuals or cooperatives. A major challenge in expanding areas under green fodder is that if not harvested in time the fodder grown could be wasted causing huge losses to the cultivator. Creating forward linkages with individual cattle growers and milk cooperatives is essential to prevent such losses. The government can play a crucial role by creating the market ecosystem — storage, good road for transportation from fodder farm to milk clusters for smooth supply and preventing losses. Aligning high yielding-variety fodder seeds distribution and other components of fodder mission with market linkage and transportation is vital for achieving the desired transformation. Traditional livestock rearing practice prevalent among farmers in the state provides an edge to a dairy entrepreneur but in order to make dairy farming a commercially viable enterprise, knowledge of modern market intelligence, strong market linkage, efficient fodder management is essential to convert the economic opportunities into sustainable business ventures. For the fodder mission to ensure this capacity building among traditional dairy farmers the various components must go beyond beneficiary-centric interventions and focus more on skill development and market-linkage for self-reliance in fodder supply in the state. Often the information about various government schemes, programmes and missions fail to reach out to the target population for whom these are intended. Student and youth organisations which are vocal on issues of unemployment, price rise and voice strong opinion for strengthening the state economy can play a pro-active role in building this capacity among dairy farmers and entrepreneurs by organising skill building workshops, training programme in collaboration with government departments, public sector undertakings, major market players. In the fast and competitive market dynamics, lagging behind in skill upgradation is a missed opportunity as there can be no vacuum in the economy with no dearth of market players in a globalized and liberalised market. Increasing fodder production in the state is a market-driven demand and if the state cannot cater to it market players outside the region will rush in to tap the growing potential of fodder supply. Availability of low-cost fodder will boost milk production, which, in turn, will result in higher per capita consumption and set in motion a positive cycle of rising demand and increased supply facilitating commercial enterprises of local dairy entrepreneurs to sustain and grow. Mainstreaming fodder production into the milk production strategy of the state is crucial to transform the chronic shortage into rewarding economic opportunities and generate more livelihood avenues for youth.