Lahore, November 24, 2009: Engro Foods Limited, in collaboration with Tetra Pak Pakistan, the world’s leading food processing and packaging solutions company, today launched Pakistan’s first Dairy Hub which is located at Kassowal, in District Sahiwal. The basic objective of this pioneering initiative is to help the farmers in improving productivity and efficiency.
Addressing the function, Sarfaraz Rehman, CEO, Engro Foods Limited said that the Dairy Hub is really a ground-breaking initiative that will bring about benefits for all stakeholders in the dairy industry in Pakistan. He further said, “Engro strongly believes in its corporate social responsibility and with this initiative, it aims to expand its CSR program by catering to the development of the local communities, by launching programs that could empower the farmers and improve their livelihoods. We are determined to promote milk production in terms of quality and quantity through the development of the livestock business.”
Expressing his views on the occasion, Azhar Ali Syed, Managing Director, Tetra Pak Pakistan said that Pakistan’s dairy sector is at an important crossroads. Milk demand is growing by 15% while supply has been increasing by only 3-4%. This supply gap is going to increase to 3.6 billion litres by 2015. He said, “To address the challenges in the dairy sector, a viable solution is the establishment of a Dairy Hub. The aim of the program is to improve the productivity of animals in rural areas by providing skills, know-how and related agri-services to dairy farmers”
Dairy Hub – a Community Dairy Development Programme (CDDP) – is a one-herd concept that organises and develops smallholder farmers’ milk production. Dairy hub is one viable solution to meet the growing demands of the dairy industry besides providing agri-services and trainings and help farmers by educating them on animals feeding and diseases. This would lead to improved quality and quantity of raw milk, improved market access, an efficient value chain, enhanced smallholder competitiveness, improved livelihoods in subsistence agriculture, increased employment in agriculture and enhanced skills of farmers.
The Dairy Hub CDDP has enlisted the support of several key players in the dairy industry besides the Livestock & Dairy Development Board (LDDB).
The programme kicked off with the development of the Kasowal Dairy Hub in June 2009 in joint collaboration with Engro Foods Ltd. In August plans were underway to establish a Dairy Hub in Mian Channu with the cooperation of Nestlé Pakistan Ltd. This will be followed by a Dairy Hub established in Kasur in collaboration with LDDB.
The Dairy Hub launch event was also addressed by Saud Pasha, GM, Agri Services, Engro Foods who also presented a video highlighting the salient features of the Dairy Hub. Later the Dairy Hub was formally launched with cutting of the ribbon by the Chief Guest.
On the occasion Tetra Pak Pakistan’s Managing Director, Azhar Ali Syed gave away milking machines and silage machines to selected registered farmers. Tetra Pak is also supporting the farmers by establishing a veterinary hospital and community training hall which are under construction.
-ends-
ABOUT TETRA PAK
Tetra Pak is the world’s leading food processing and packaging solutions company. Working closely with our customers and suppliers, we provide safe, innovative and environmentally sound products that each day meet the needs of hundreds of millions of people around the world. With over 20,000 employees and operations in more than 150 countries, we believe in responsible industry leadership and a sustainable approach to business. Our motto, “PROTECTS WHAT’S GOOD, "™ reflects our vision to make food safe and available, everywhere.
More information about Tetra Pak is available at www.tetrapak.com
ٹائمز آف چترال 