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mini dairies in the country selling pasteurised milk, ultra long life milk, yoghurts, ice cream,
butter and ghee. Producers earn more from informal than from formal markets (DDA, 2009).
In February 2010 the industry launched the FAO Dairy Project with the purpose of updating
the National Dairy Strategy as well capacity building among the stakeholder associations and
unions (Dairy Uganda Forum, 2010)
Emerging or unresolved challenges. Despite the success of Uganda’s dairy industry, several
production and marketing challenges remain (Wozemba and Nsanja, 2008). These include:
• Inconsistent delivery of inputs and services, weak linkages between farmers, processors
and milk-collection centres, weak public–private dialogue and little information sharing
along the value chain. There is a tendency for farmers to be involved not only in primary
production, but also in transport and processing
• Seasonal production fluctuations due to lack of feed especially during dry spells. Farmers
address this through use of locally available fodder such as banana peel, brewers’
by-products and leaves of some common trees. Further research is however required to
determine such fodder’s suitability and the actual balanced feed requirements
• Marketing of surplus milk in high-potential areas in the West and increasing production
in the Eastern and Northern areas of the country through improving genetic potential,
improved feeding, and rationalising the use of milk animals for draught work
• Ensuring that smallholder farmers can afford feed and veterinary and AI services
• Milk handling by producers, transporters and traders although low-cost and convenient
often occurs in unsuitable plastic or metal containers, adversely effecting quality.
Challenges include the high cost of milk cans, tankers, and coolers, lack of calibration for
tankers used to transport milk to official channels, and rejection of milk on quality grounds
by processors after delivery
• With an estimated 80–90 percent of marketed milk being unprocessed through the
informal sector, issues of quality assurance remain. As in Kenya producers and consumers
often favour informal markets. This provides opportunity for low-cost processing and
value addition through traditional dairy products.
Lessons learned for scaling up. A key lesson is the need for ongoing discussions and coordination
efforts by stakeholders along the value chain. This includes smallholder farmers and traders,
development agencies, and policymakers. Although the dairy industry and its supporting
services were liberalised, there is a need to coordinate business development services,
involving farmer organisations, while avoiding direct subsidies that are known to stifle markets.
The case studies: Eastern Africa 43