Inyange pledges support to milk suppliers

Inyange industrIES has pledged to offer technical and managerial support to eight milk collecting centres in Nyagatare district.

Friday, January 11, 2013
Suppliers deliver dairy products in the city. NewTimes/ File

Inyange industrIES has pledged to offer technical and managerial support to eight milk collecting centres in Nyagatare district.Nyagatare district, which has the largest head of cattle in the country, boasts nine milk collecting centres of the 25 countrywide.Addressing farmers in Nyagatare, Sudadi Kayitana, the managing director of Inyange Industries, said they would offer at least five highly-qualified staff to manage each centre.Kayitana said technical support and intensive training would be given to the farmers, adding that service technicians will be handy to maintain milk collecting centres."The deployment of technology is instrumental to realise high production. Virus-proofing will also be taken care of and back-up procedures for data. Ours will be cheap and credible technology,” Kayitana said. "Essentially, the staff will give the most effective combination of experience, skills and knowledge.”  Kayitana said one of the challenges facing milk delivery has been poor quality milk because farmers still use traditional methods to handle milk. "We want to improve quality. There is a lot to process from milk. We want to facilitate you to produce other products such as cheese and milk tablets that can compete on the international market,” he told the farmers. Ernest Ruzindaza, the Permanent Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, who presided over the function, equally assured farmers of support. The PS said his ministry has a long-term programme to avail clean water to farms in the country. He, however, warned farmers on the dangers of the Foot and Mouth disease. "We shall provide pure water to farmers to prevent some cow diseases,” he said.