UGANDA – According to the FY2021/2022 annual dairy performance report by the Dairy Development Authority (DDA) of Uganda, dairy exports generated more than UGX382 billion (US$103M) as compared to the previous year.
The country’s export earnings increased by 11% despite the drought witnessed in some milk sheds.
The DDA attributes this growth to the increased compliance of the country’s dairy products to both regional and international standards.
The report read, “Uganda exported a total of 83,063 metric tonnes of dairy products to 16 countries”
The number of countries that imported their dairy products from Uganda however fell from 18 in the previous financial year to 16.
The country lost Qatar, the UK, the Czech Republic and Sri Lanka as existing markets but gained the United States and Somalia as new export markets.
According to the report, the country mainly exported UHT milk, butter, casein powder, milk powder, whey protein, and cheese in FY2021/2022.
Uganda currently exports to the East African Community but the DDA recently announced that the country intends to expand its export reach to Algeria as well.
According to Mr Samson Akankiza, the DDA executive director, during the presentation of the dairy performance report, the country is in talks to export milk powder to Algeria effective this month.
He informed that technical verification of the regulatory framework of the country’s dairy value chain was carried out last December by an Algerian delegation and that business meetings are currently being held in Algeria.
“Algeria’s milk production is generally low and most of their milk products are being imported from other countries. Uganda has quality milk which is organically produced meaning we shall have the best product on the market,” said Akankiza.
The DDA also noted that the average international raw milk price increased from UGX1,120 (US$0.3) recorded in FY2022 to UGX1,757 (US$0.47). The global market price is therefore at least 48% higher than the national farm gate price.
The DDA reassured that the farm gate milk prices are relatively fair but the county’s per capita milk consumption is somewhat wanting.
According to the report, the national per capita consumption stands at 62 litres, far below the 200 litres per capita consumption recommended by the World Health Organization.
The report also highlighted that licensed milk collection centres have increased to 547 in the reviewed financial year with an estimated capacity of 2.3 million litres compared to 475 recorded in the previous year.
The Ugandan dairy sector is growing despite the challenges it faces. According to data from the DDA, Uganda’s annual milk production in 2018 was recorded at 2.2 billion litres, a gradual increase from the 1.8 billion litres produced in 2012.
As of June 2019, annual milk production in the country had risen to 2.4 billion litres and by 2021 the country was producing 2.8 billion litres of milk annually.
The country’s dairy sector is currently valued at US$ 1 billion according to the DDA.
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