Fresh milk, cake of butter and cheese are not easily available in Tsirang district as farmers are slowing moving towards poultry businesses. Only a handful of farmers are still into dairy business. Kapila Mani Resal, 70, is one of them.
Kapila is a successful farmer in Tshokana village. He owns eight cows including a jersey, a mithun and two hybrids from Europe. The hybrid gives him 18 liters of milk in a day, and the jersey about 10 liters of milk.
He said the first saw hybrid cattle from Europe when he visited Dagapela. “The animal fascinated me. I asked my friend to sell the cattle to me but he refused.” In months that followed, Kapila said, his friend was in a dire need of money. “He got the money and I the hybrid,” he said.
There are other advantages of dairy farms, he says. Kapila and his family members use biogas instead of Liquefied Petroleum Gas.
“We use biogas to cook. The residue left behind will be drained out from the outlet tank which is further used as manure for vegetables and other plants,” said Kapila’s son, Budhiman.
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Kapila is the only farmer supplying milk to about 18 households in Damphu town.
“Many people talk about other forms of business being more lucrative but I am not into it. I often hear about contractors and other businessmen going bankrupt. My business is simple,” said Kapila.
Kapila says the family earns some Nu.8,000 as profit a month after deducting the expenses on fuel and feeds.
“If we had a milk collection center for our gewog it would have been much easier to sell our products. We could have supplied what we can produce.”
According to the district Livestock officer of Tsirang, Dorji Wangchuk, Tsirang will soon have milk collection center, which will strengthen the market.
