Dairy Cattle Production and Milk Handling Practices under Different Management Systems in Bako-Tibe District, Western Oromia, Ethiopia

Abstract

The study was conducted in the Bako-Tibe district of West Shoa Zone with the objective to assess dairy production and milk handling practices under varied management systems. A questionnaire survey, key informant interview and focus group discussion were employed. The major sources of feed for cattle in the study area were natural pasture (90.6%), crop residues (8%), and improved forage (1.4%). Natural mating was the main breeding system in the majority (94.7%) of rural and 80.2% of urban dairy production settings. A significant number of milk producers in the peri-urban (55.7%) and rural areas (45.8%) were using plastic containers as milking utensils for storage whereas bottle gourd was a dominant (50%) milk-storage utensil in the rural production system. Generally, the hygienic practice during milk production in the study area was poor and milk-handling practices were traditional and milk is liable to contamination. Limited awareness of hygienic handling of milk, shortage of clean water (index = 0.2), lack of smoking and cleaning plants (index = 0.188), and poor hygienic condition were the major constraints of clean milk production in the study area. The major dairy production constraints in the study areas were lack of grazing land followed by the prevalence of diseases and inadequate supplementary feed. It was concluded that the reproductive and productive performances of both local and crossbred cows were relatively low, and milk handling practices in the study areas were suboptimal. Hence, intensive extension services and awareness creation on hygienic milk production, handling, and utilization are recommended.