Ubay, Bohol eyed as dairy capital of the Philippines

CEBU, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture has met Israeli and Argentinian experts to discuss about turning the island province of Bohol into the dairy capital of the Philippines.

Stakeholders in Ubay, Bohol met with the experts last Friday, Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol said in his official social media account.

Piñol said the forum with the dairy stakeholders and local officials of Ubay, Bohol is the second consultation to be conducted by the DA as it gathers consensus on the establishment of what could be the biggest and most ambitious dairy project ever to be implemented by government.

"The proposed dairy project will involve an initial 5,000 heads of Girolando dairy cows to be brought in from Brazil under the supervision of the OIE, the world animal health body," the official said.

"It will be located in the 3,000-hectare Ubay Stock Farm owned by the Agriculture Department which has largely been under-utilized for so many years," Piñol added.

The dairy cows will be housed in modern dairy sheds to be designed by Israeli experts who were also involved in the development of Vietnam's TH Dairy with 29,000-heads of cows.

"Planned to be a partnership between government, the private sector and the local stakeholders, the Ubay Dairy Project is expected to produce an estimated 21-M liters of milk every year, a volume which could double the country's milk production," the DA chief said.

According to Piñol, a dairy company will be invited to participate in the program by establishing a fresh milk processing and packaging factory next to the dairy farm as proposed.

"Offsprings of the Girolando dairy cows will later be turned over to farmers' groups in other parts of the province where other dairy facilities will be established," he explained.

"Departing from the largely unsuccessful individual dairy cow dispersal program, the Bohol Dairy Project will house the cattle in sheds where modern dairy farming techniques being used in Israel and other countries now will be employed," the agriculture official further added.

Last December 18, Bohol officials led by Governor Edgar Chatto met with top DA Dairy Program officials for the first consultation.

Chatto and Ubay officials expressed support for the Dairy Project saying that it fits well into the provincial development plan which they have crafted for the island province.