CHI Limited, a dairy and milk firm, said its road construction at the Bobi Grazing Reserve in Niger state is 90 percent complete along with other infrastructure that would boost local milk production.
In a statement, the company said the investment was part of its commitment to advance the Central Bank of Nigeria’s backward integration programme in the dairy industry.
CHI Limited said it has made substantial progress in massive infrastructural development, coordination of local farmers/herders and procurement of 300 hybrid cows (heifers) at the reserve.
It has rehabilitated and reconstructed a dam with 12 million cubic meters of water, which CBN fact-finding committee had adjudged as the best in the grazing reserve.
“In the interim, 100 pastoralists have been identified through biometric capture and are primed for the milk collection scheme.
It will also clear more land, plant more grasses and buy 200 hybrid cows to attain the 500 initial threshold for cross breeding through Artificial Insemination (AI) with local cows to boost milk production.
The firm said it is partnering with Sahel Group (ALDDN), on future training of local farmers in Bobi and mapping of local dairy production in Ogun State as an additional initiative to bolster milk production opportunities.
It is also finalizing arrangements with the management of Maizube Farms to process milk at their plant.
Commenting, its Managing Director, Mr. Deepanjan Roy, said: “We want to reiterate our commitment to strengthen the backwards integration policy to boost dairy production in the country with the massive investment in infrastructure and human capacity development at the Bobi Grazing Reserve.
“In partnership with the Niger state Government, we will be driving the project as a model for backward integration on a commercial scale,” he said.
