Family Farms Produce Less Milk

The total milk production on family farms in 2012 decreased by 0.2 percent compared to the previous year, with more than 5 percent reduction in the quantities of milk that these farms delivered for purchase, while the quantities used for household consumption, direct sales, or livestock feeding increased, according to data from the State Bureau of Statistics.

The total milk production (cow, sheep, and goat) on family farms last year amounted to 676.5 thousand tons, which is 0.2 percent less than in the previous year.

The largest portion of this milk, 458.4 thousand tons, was delivered by family farms to dairies. This quantity of milk delivered to dairies is 5.6 percent less than the previous year, representing a decrease of just over 27 thousand tons.

Family farms used more milk for household consumption, and the quantity of fresh milk within households increased by 9.5 percent, to 40.1 thousand tons.

Significantly, by 38.5 percent, to 31.4 thousand tons, the quantities sold directly by farms, either on the farm or at the market, or donated, increased.

The quantities of milk used by family farms for livestock feeding also increased by 15.1 percent, to 98.1 thousand tons.

Family farms used 45.2 thousand tons of milk for processing on the farms last year, which is a decrease of 1.1 percent compared to the previous year in the quantity of milk used for the production of cream, butter, cheese, and other products.

Statistics on the products obtained from milk processing on farms show that the quantity of produced cream, butter, fresh cheese, and other products increased, while the production of other cheeses decreased.

Family farms produced 1,352 tons of cream last year, or 1.3 percent more than the previous year, 35 tons of butter, or 6.1 percent more, and other products (yogurt, sour milk, etc.) 684 tons, or 10.7 percent more.

The quantities of fresh cheese produced also increased by 1.7 percent, to 4,982 tons, while the quantity of other cheeses produced decreased by 10.6 percent, to just over a thousand tons.