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27 Jan 2019 - By VikingDenmark

Viking sends semen, embryos, and Jersey heifers to Uganda

With the aim of improving milk production in Uganda, VikingDenmark has entered into a long-term partnership with the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) in Uganda. Two vets visited Denmark in October to choose the 50 Jersey heifers that will form the foundation stones of the project, designed to give a genuine kick start to milk production in Uganda.

 

By VikingDenmark

 

“We are looking forward to a long-term partnership with Viking”

 

So says Professor Justus Rutaisire, one of the two vets who came to Denmark to choose Jersey heifers for a new project in Uganda, focused on optimising milk production. As the local cows don’t produce enough milk, Professor Rutaisire has been on the lookout for a different breed that can also tolerate the heat in Africa. The choice fell on VikingJersey and 50 animals have now been sent to Uganda. The project has also bought semen and embryos from Viking, and the plan is for NARO to act as the Viking distributor in East Africa.

As mentioned, Rutaisire came to Denmark in October with a fellow vet to find the 50 heifers to be transported southwards. To this end, they visited cattle farmer Morten Jensen in Hjørring, where they also inspected two of the donor cows behind the 16 embryos they have bought from him. Jensen joined them in the cowshed to demonstrate his two milking robots that the two vets found fascinating. Jensen is thrilled to export his products to Uganda and looks forward to following the project from the sidelines:

 

“It sounds promising, and it will be exciting to see what Viking and NARO can do together,” he said.

 

NARO has nine locations in Uganda, where local cattle farmers will be able to seek advice and guidance and buy VikingJersey genetics.

Milk production in Uganda

Uganda, in East Africa, has a population of around 40 million. They have approximately 14 million cows, of which 90% are local breeds plus 10% cross breeds. The local breeds produce about 2 litres of milk per day, while the cross breeds produce some 18 litres a day.