Alaska Milk Corporation (AMC) has partnered with the National Dairy Authority (NDA) and University of the Philippines (UP) Los Baños to launch a pilot training program for Filipino dairy farmers.
The training program, now being conducted by AMC and the Dairy Training Research Institute (DTRI) of UP Los Baños, has already started and will be conducted until November 25. It is participated in by 50 dairy farmers.
Technical topics such as animal behavior, cow comfort, feed formulation, and milk handling, among others, will be included in the course to improve the yield of dairy farmers in the Philippines..
The training will also feature some best practices from AMC’s parent company, Royal FrieslandCampina, a Dutch dairy cooperative with 150 years of experience in dairy production and management.
“Royal FrieslandCampina and Alaska are committed to empower Filipino dairy farmers and improving the Philippine dairy industry,” AMC Managing Director Tarang Gupta said in a statement.
“Through strong, enduring, and meaningful partnerships with the NDA and DTRI, we will see to it that we will nourish Filipino families, farmers, and children now and for the years to come,” he added.
The training course will be complemented by topics such as digital marketing and entrepreneurship in order to enhance the participants’ skills on selling their milk to the market, especially at a time when e-commerce is quickly becoming an essential skill in the agricultural sector.
In a video message during the ceremonial signing of the partnership, Vice President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo said that despite the challenges of the pandemic, she is "happy to see that the private and public sectors are not being paralyzed by the situation".
"You are here right now forging partnerships, finding more ways to engage each other so that you can continue your shared advocacy of helping our fellowmen thrive during this difficult time,” Robredo said.
" is just one example of how reliable and dependable you are for the industry, for the countless farmers and entrepreneurs who look to you for support, for the communities in your midst, and the entire Filipino nation," she further said.
For his part, DTRI Director Dr. Amado Angeles said these kinds of partnerships enable the organization to impart knowledge and help improve the growing dairy industry in the Philippines.
"At the same time, we help unlock the potential of Pinoy dairy farmers. We look forward to more partnerships such as these with Alaska and NDA," he said.
As Alaska celebrates its 50th year anniversary next year, it remains committed to its mission of providing affordable nutrition to Filipino families, the company said.
There are now efforts from the Philippine government to increase the country's local dairy output as well as promote it.
Earlier this month, Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) OIC Executive Director Ronnie Domingo told Business Bulletin that in order to boost the patronage for locally produced dairy products, his agency is planning to distribute more vending machines that serve pasteurized milk, chocolate milk, pastillas, and other dairy products made by Filipino farmers.
He then said that one option for the agency to bankroll this move is to tap funds from the US Public Law 480 (US PL480), a United States-funded program that targets to help developing countries like the Philippines become more food secure.
It was just also earlier this month when PCC, an attached agency to the Department of Agriculture (DA), launched the oneSTore.ph vending machine that serves ready-to-consume dairy carabao products 24/7.
Located beside the entrance of the Milka Krem outlet in the Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, the automated machine was built to promote the produce of local dairy farmers and make them conveniently and easily accessible to a wider range of consumers.