The Present Status of Milk Production and Applicable Criteria Conducive to Its Amelioration in Under-Producing Countries

Abstract

This keynote lecture to the 2nd Pan American Congress on Milk Production in São Paulo, Brazil, 13-17 May 1985, is primarily directed to the situation in South America, where 24.4 million dairy/dual-purpose cows average only 1028 kg milk per cow annually. As measures to increase milk production the author pinpoints efficient use of roughages (forages and crop byproducts) and concentrates for feeding, decreasing average calving interval from 16-17 to 12-13 months and the percentage of dry cows from 35-40 to 18-22 and improving conception rates by improved feeding, selection and management to counter the adverse effects of hot climate on milk production, and continuous and rigorous selection for milk yield and other economic traits (e.g. reproduction, resistance to disease and heat resistance) using AI. However, it is stressed from the outset that improved milk production is only feasible when governments can guarantee that all additional milk produced can be marketed with a profit margin over the loan repayments and additional costs involved. Evidence from South America indicates that a major constraint on the marketing of milk products is that at present they are too expensive for most consumers.