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Extension Services for Quality Milk Production
Proceedings of an International Workshop in conjunction with the East-West-Forum
of the Federal Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Forestry
and the "Window of German Animal Breeding" at the International Green Week
24-25 January, 1999
Extension Services for Quality Milk Production in Croatia
P. Caput – University of Zagreb
A) Amount of production and purchase
Croatia needs a yearly production of 1 100 million litres of cow milk
to meet the biological needs of the population. Cow milk represents about
91 % of total milk and the rest is sheep and goat milk.
Current cow milk production is about 700 million litres covering about
80 % of domestic needs. The rest is imported from neighbouring countries.
The amount of purchased (market) milk is relatively low, about 50 %, with
a trend to increase. Croatia will soon be able to satisfy the domestic
needs by own production, mostly by increasing milk production per cow (2
500 ® 4 000) and herd. A relatively small
number of cows (about 240 000) is kept in extremely small peasant herds
(about 80 000) with an average herd of 3 cows.
On 20 larger dairy farms there are 4 000 cows. In 1997 there were only
200 peasant husbandries with over 15 cows.
In the next 5 years dairy cattle farming is expected to have 10 000
Holstein Friesian cows producing 7 000 l of milk in special dairy farms
in addition to 240 000 Simmental, Brown Swiss as well as crosbreed cows
producing 4 000 l of milk in modernized standard herds.
B) Milk price
The current price of raw milk at the farm gate is about 2.25 kunas (0.30
Euro). The basis for price forming is the milk fat content and fatfree
dry matter. In the purchase price the dairy share is 75 % and the state
subsidy is 25 %. New Regulations are being prepared on milk and milk products.
The minimum criteria for fresh cow milk quality valid in the EU will be
accepted. Some dairies already do evaluate milk according to the somatic
cells content (400 000/ml) forming a stimulating price for milk with smaller
amounts of cells.
C) The efforts in dairy extension for milk quality
The extension service for milk quality is organized at (1) the state
level and (2) in the network of milk purchasing in dairies.
1.1. The government finances the advisory agricultural service conducted
from the State Institute of the service. In 20 regional services 17 specialists
for primary livestock production are employed (agronomists, food technologists
and vets). The number of specialists is inadequate, particularly now that
peasant dairy herds are extremely small. The norm for an expert adviser
of 20 000 stock-units is not suited to present circumstances. One man cannot
properly serve about 2 000-3 000 herds.
1.2. In the system of financial support in livestock breeding health
protection of the udder is also included (3kn/1000). Through the Veterinary
Institute and five regional veterinary institutes the Government also finances
the service for health protection against mastitis and other diseases.
Experts of the Institute-, directly or by veterinary services in the field
visit herds, do milk sampling and analyzing.
1.3. Croatian stockbreeding and selection centre, through regional services,
controls productivity (A4 and AT methods), thus indirectly contributing
to the quality of raw milk.
1.4.. Larger dairies in Croatia (11 dairies purchase about 95 % of milk)
have their own professional services which systematically offer advice
and control milk quality. These dairies are well equipped for milk transport
and processing and have laboratories for chemical and microbiological analyses.
There is no central milk quality analysis as a basis for price forming.
Now the analyses are made in the laboratories of the dairies. Agricultural
advisory service is not equipped for making analyses.
Apart from larger dairies in Croatia there are about 30 small dairies with
a tendency for the number to increase. They do not have their own extension
service and their suppliers are under the patronage of the advisory service.
Croatia does not have a reference laboratory for milk analysis. The
services are provided by the Dairy Institute in Slovenia. The Dairy Institute
of the Faculty of Agriculture in Zagreb has the qualifications (staff,
equipment and methods) for obtaining the status of a reference laboratory.
It seems that some diverse views on the choice of the laboratory at the
state level have to be agreed. The Laboratory is a member of the INTERLAB
and has a good interlaboratory collaboration. Members of this Laboratory
actively work in the International Dairy Federation, although Croatia is
not officially a member of the Federation.
In the process of preparing the Regulations on raw milk and milk products
quality a collaboration with the Technical Committee (TC-34) and the work
group WG-5 has been established.
The foreign collaboration officially began with the membership in the
ICAR. By building the necessary infrastructure in productivity control,
particularly the control laboratories, full collaboration will be established.
The extension service for improving milk quality also contributes by
regular written information and advice.
There are three popular professional papers (periodicals) treating primary
milk production as well.
1) The Croatian Dairy Association publishes the specialist monthly
"Mljekarski list" (The Dairy Paper) which is available to almost every
milk producer (the periodical is financed by dairies);
2) "Gospodarski list" (The Agriculture Paper), a popular magazine for
many years, a half-monthly whose subscribers are also a number of milk
producers.
3) The periodical "Nova zemlja" (New Land) is a new monthly giving information
and advice on primary livestock production.
Scientific and professional articles on milk production and its quality
can be found in the three national periodicals: "Mljekarstvo" (Dairy),
"Stocarstvo" (Stockbreeding) and "Poljoprivredna znanstvena smotra" (Agriculture
Conspectus Scientificus).
In conclusion we can say that Croatia is gradually developing to achieve
primary production of high quality raw milk. Dairy industry and the public
show interest in the best quality and healthy milk and milk products. The
competition of domestic production with foreign dairy products on Croatian
market is speeding the establishment of efficient service to primary producers
for cheaper and better quality milk. The intensity of the development of
the extension service also depends on global interstate political and economic
relations.
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