Agribusiness Handbook: Milk / Dairy Products - FAO

Figure 3: Development of cattle ownership, Tajikistan
1,000 heads
1,600
1,400
1,200
1,000
800
600
400
200
0
1991 1997 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
State farms Derkhan farms Households
Source: World Bank, 2005, based on National Statistics of Tajikistan
The proportion of cows in the dairy herd has also increased, from 38% in 1988
to 52% in 2003, reflecting the increased importance placed on dairy production.
Most of the increase in the number of cattle occurred at the households level,
with households owning 87% of the national herd. Only 3% of cattle are
held by private dekhan farms (small farm units with fewer than 50 animals,
created by splitting up kolkhozes and sovkhozes) and 10% by state farms.
The privatization of state cattle farms was complicated by the indivisibility of
fixed assets such as buildings and milking equipment and by other issues
related to the decline of management skills in the agriculture sector. A World
Bank assessment of livestock production, conducted in 2005, estimates the
average annual milk production at 1,200 litres per cow on dekhan and state
farms, compared with only 600 litres per cow on household farms. Although
dekhan and state farms account for only 13% of total milk production, 36% of
total marketed milk comes from these farms. Most of their production is sold
to larger processors.
Two groups of dairy processing plants can be distinguished. The first group
consists of relatively large (processing capacities of 1,500 to 10,000 litres per
day) usually state- or privately-owned factories. Processing equipment usually
dates back to Soviet times. These processing plants do not buy the milk from
household farms, but instead contract with bigger dehkans and state farms
for defined quantities of milk per day, sending their vehicles to collect the milk.
The second group of dairy processors consists of semi-industrial plants with
smaller capacities. These companies have been established in recent years,
mostly in urban centres. Collecting 200 to 500 litres of milk per day, either directly
from producers or from traders, they produce ice cream, cheese or traditional
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