There was a high demand for dairy products in the capital, and to keep the supply chain uninterrupted during the nationwide lockdown, the Department of Livestock stepped in by buying all the surplus products from other districts. However, the supply far exceeded the demand and now they are struggling to sell the dairy products.
Over 130,000 balls of cheese and more than 74,000 kilograms of butter were brought to Bhutan Livestock Development Corporation Limited (BLDCL) in Thimphu. The corporation also received more than 5,000 cartons of eggs but its sale have been better than dairy products. The products were brought to Thimphu in hope for a better market only to remain stacked up in refrigerators of the dairy outlets. This has not been an issue prior to the implementation of lockdown as people had a free market. However, since the lockdown, the department has been collecting the products from people.
Only about half of the products brought were sold so far.
“People usually have a free market and they sell on their own whether in Thimphu or other districts. However, after lockdown, there is no market for them so the livestock department has been collecting the products. And since all the excess products from other districts are brought here, I think It has exceeded the demand,” said Towchu Rabgay, Chief Livestock Officer at the Department of Livestock with the Agriculture Ministry.
He added storing dairy products have become the main issue. Another outlet managed by a youth group is sharing the same fate as BLDCL.
“We usually bring products only from Merag and Sagteng. However, we had to receive from many other districts due to the lockdown. We, therefore, have excess products. Since the government is buying from people, some products are not up to the required quality. That’s why the products are getting spoilt within a short period no matter how much we try to store,” said Pema Khandu, the Manager for Highland Youth Group in Thimphu.
The outlets also started door to door services during the lockdown and reduced the prices to promote the market. Meanwhile, the situation has allowed the department to pioneer new ideas.
“It gives us an opportunity to learn from the situation and come up with different innovative. This gave us a lesson that we should explore and research means to store these dairy products for a longer period,” the chief livestock officer added.
The BLDCL is also experimenting to make dry cheese and fermented cheese from the unsold products. They are hoping the situation to improve from next week with the start of vehicle movement.
Kinley Dem
