Arla Foods has signed an agreement with its joint-venture partner, Tolaram Group, to build a Danish-designed state-of-the-art commercial dairy farm in Kaduna State, as part of efforts aimed at boosting local milk production.

Construction of the dairy farm, which has since started, is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Located in Kaduna State, the 200-hectare farm will house 400 imported dairy cows, modern milking parlor, advanced animal cooling technology and all other modern technology used in dairy farms today.

Furthermore, the farm will produce all roughage for feeding and would have housing facilities for its employees. The milk will be processed by Arla’s dairy plant in Kaduna to supply locally produced dairy products to Nigerian consumers.

Arla Foods farm management expert, Snorri Sigurdsson, says, “We are highly delighted by the signing of the construction agreement with our joint-venture partners, Tolaram Group. This signals the beginning of greater things to come in the dairy sector in Nigeria and we are truly happy to construct the farm in Kaduna, the Dairy State of Nigeria! Without a doubt, this collaboration will help a great deal to boost local milk production in Nigeria.”

The farm will be located on the Damau Household Milk Farm project land, where Arla has entered into a public-private partnership with the Kaduna State government to support about 1,000 local dairy farmers and 3,000 imported cows with investment in milk collection and processing, and with training to improve milk production, animal husbandry techniques, and farm profitability, thereby enhancing the dairy sector in Nigeria.