Bangladesh needs to produce 1.58 crore tonnes of milk annually for the people of the country to drink milk every day, according to the standards set by World Health Organisation.
Livestock officials said that although the country’s milk production has increased by 130 per cent in the last ten years, production falls short of target by 18 lakh tonnes due to various factors, including lack of introduction of improved breed and loss of farmers caused by lack of proper management.
The Department of Livestock (DLS) is implementing a project titled Livestock and Dairy Development project during the period between 2019 and 2025. The project cost has been estimated at about Tk 5,390 crore, funded by the government of Bangladesh and the World Bank.
The officials said that they have focused on increasing milk production by addressing various challenges. The problems are being solved by providing necessary training, technical assistance and developing breed through the project to meet this deficit.
It is gradually reducing the deficit in milk production. Besides, the project helps supply milk by creating producer groups (PG). It also helps the farmers get fair price, they added.
According to the Department of Livestock (DLS) data, the country has an annual demand for 1.58 crore tonnes of milk, but its production is 1.4 crore tonnes. As a result, per capita availability of milk in the country is about 222 ml instead of 225 ml.
The data shows that two-thirds of the people in the country do not regularly drink milk due to various reasons, including high price, lack of consumption habit and marketing problems. So, the amount of milk produced is not distributed evenly.
There are various reasons behind it including lack of circulation of advanced and improved breed, loss of farmers due to lack of management, lack of necessary training, negligence of many farmers in following the rules, not getting fair price in the informal sector, not having milk in the daily diet of the common people and not developing the formal market for milk.
Dr. Riazul Haque, Director General of Department of Livestock (DLS) said, once farmers used to get 3-4 litres of milk from a cow they reared. “We increased milk production through breed development. Now farmers get 15-25 litres of milk from a cow.”
Besides, the number of commercial farms and country’s cows has also increased. Thus they have increased the production of milk two and a half times in last 10 years. But along with the production, milk demand has also increased.
“So, we are now stressing the need for breed development rather than increasing the number of cows. We are taking steps to increase milk production through LDDP and breed development is one of them,” he said.
According to the official data, milk production in the country was around 60.92 lakh tonnes in FY2013-14. It increased to more than 92.83 lakh tonnes in next three FYs. Milk production was 1.30 crore tonnes in FY2021-22.
But the demand for milk in the country was 1.50 crore tonnes in 2017-18, and it increased to 1.58 crore tonnes in FY2022-23.
Dr Golam Rabbani, Chief Technical Coordinator of LDDP, thinks that one of the reasons for the shortfall in milk production is low milk consumption habits and lack of proper marketing system.
He said the current demand is calculated if every person in the country drinks milk regularly. “We all do not have milk in our daily diet. Even those who drink daily do not take 250 mL each.”
The analyst also thinks that if check and balance can be brought in the three sectors of production, consumption and supply, then there will be no shortage in the milk market. “For this, 18 crore people of the country have to make a habit of drinking milk.”
Those who do not drink milk directly will consume other dairy products, he added.
In terms of milk production, Bangladesh is not only lagging behind in meeting the country's demand, but also lagging behind in milk production compared to neighbouring countries.
According to Dairy Asia, India is the largest milk producer in Asia by producing 14 crore tonnes of milk annually, followed by China which produces more than 4 crore tonnes of milk. Apart from this, Pakistan is close behind by producing 4 crore tonnes of milk.
United States ranks second in global milk production by producing about 10 crore tonnes annually. Pakistan is followed by Brazil and Russia with production of about 4 crore tonnes and 2.5 crore tonnes respectively.
According to a research report 'Bangladesh: A Growing Dairy Market 2023' released by the Netherlands government, only about 5-7 per cent of the total milk produced is processed and is distributed through the formal market. The remaining 93 per cent of milk production is sold fresh to the consumers.
Fifteen major companies, including Milk Vita, BRAC, Akij and PRAN, produce packaged milk and other dairy products in Bangladesh. Several of them produce a wide range of dairy products, while others focus on more mass-market products of pasteurised milk, ghee and curd.
The report also said that the price of milk has increased by Tk 5 to Tk 45 in the informal sector in five years from 2015 to 2020. In the formal sector, milk price increased by Tk 25 to Tk 80 from Tk 55 per litre in five years.
As a result, the buyers have to buy a litre of milk from the formal sector at Tk 90-110, which is not possible for many buyers in Dhaka city to afford regularly. “So, many people cannot develop the habit of drinking milk regularly even if they want,” the report says.
Arifur Rahman, a farmer who lives in Arihazar upazila of Narayanganj, said that one of the reasons for the shortage of milk is that farmers are at a loss. Few of first-time entrepreneurs have necessary training and own grass fields, said Rahman, also owner of Arif Agro.
As a result, he said, entrepreneurs cannot do necessary management of their farms. It gradually reduces milk production. Besides, the farmers became dependent on readymade feed due to lack of grass. This increases the production cost of milk. On the contrary, the market does not get the price of milk according to the cost of production.
“However, it is also true that many entrepreneurs build farms alongside other professions and cannot devote necessary time and attention to it. It is also one of the causes of losses in the farm.”
He said that LDDP is providing training to marginal farmers and made them aware that grasslands should be prepared first. Apart from this, marginal farmers under the project are getting animal health support, various modern machines for milk production and financial support as well.
