Ronald Kwikiriza the Chairman of Tooro Dairy Cooperative Society says that the adulteration of milk is a bad practice since it contaminates the milk. He says that vendors who engage in the practice do not even care about the quality of water.
The Dairy
Development Authority is concerned that milk adulteration remains a challenge
facing the dairy industry.
Farmers reportedly add water and maize flour among others in a bid to increase the
quantity of milk and fetch higher prices. Water is added to the milk from the
process of milking to the time of selling.
However, the
authority notes that milk adulteration lowers its quality and at times the milk
goes bad before reaching the final consumer.
Speaking at
the June diary” month celebrations in Fort Portal, Dr. Moses Ahimbisibwe, the Regional
Manager of Dairy Development Authority says whereas the body has taken serious measures to ensure only good and quality dairy products are on market, farmers
resort to adulteration of milk in a bid to get more money since the cost of
farming inputs is high.
He also says
that they are concerned about the farmers who fail to follow up on the products
from the farm that end up in the market.
//Cue in:
farmers should be solely responsible.
Cue out:
seek license from DDA//
Ronald
Kwikiriza the Chairman Tooro Dairy Cooperative Society says that the
adulteration of milk is a bad practice since it contaminates the milk. He says
that vendors who engage in the practice do not even care about the quality of
water.
Kwikiriza
wants the government to revive cooperatives to enable farmers to control the
inflows and outflows of the dairy products as well as collective bargaining related
to dairy products and policies.
//Cue in:
the fake products.
Cue out: in
the cooperative”//
George
William Oroma, the project manager of the integrated smallholder program at SNV
which is focused on improving the quality of milk products in the Rwenzori
region says that milk contamination caused by drugs administered to animals is
a key concern that is affecting the dairy industry. He advised farmers to wait
for the animals to heal before being milked to avoid putting the lives of the
consumers at risk.
//Cue in : we found that…
Cue out:
people are not observing”//
In March,
the government designed a new system of ensuring improved standards of milk, especially
for raw or unprocessed milk on the market.
This will replace the open system currently where the milk is vended from jerry cans or aluminum cans, which increases the vulnerability of the product
to adulteration with either water or unapproved preservatives.
