The WE MAKE IT POSSIBLE Campaign is really a milestone toward addressing the real challenges which the world has started facing. I grew up in a city of India where the cow is considered a sacred animal. In a village near my city, daily life used to revolve around Cow & Dairy. Almost every household used to have at least one dairy animal to fulfil the need for dairy products. Houses with more animals supported the need for dairy products of society. There were many festivals which were centered around Cow. Farming was an integrated system where non-edible part of crop grown by farmers was used as fodder. Grains & pulses grown by a farmer in field was used as Concentrate feed. Cow Dung was used as Manure in the field & also as fuel for cooking. All animals were also taken collectively to nearby grassland where they used to graze in the day time.
When I was in vet school, I started viewing a different picture. Grassland started disappearing. Demand for Milk was ever-rising because of growing population. Growing Stress level on dairy animals forced them to produce less & fall sicker. More & more animals visited clinics with reproductive issues. When I joined the industry, this problem started compounding. Newspaper articles showing Fake milk appearance/ adulteration in the industry became common. I always wondered with the largest population of bovine, we are short of milk & fake milk/adulteration is getting a chance to bridge the gap of supply & demand. Ban on cow slaughter has compounded the problem even more & now infertile & unproductive animals are visible on roads. Accidents happening because of these stray animals on roads with loss of human life was becoming a serious concern for society. The solution to this problem was to improve the animals' lifetime performance so that animals remain in milk for most of the time, dairy profession becomes profitable & farmers don’t leave animals on road.
I am delighted the share that with DSM’s Carotenoids & OVN concepts, we could able to find an initial solution to improve the lifetime performance of animals. In the last 7 Years, constantly working to make infertile but breedable animals fit for reproduction, by using Oxicare fertility premix we have shown promising results. We are able to reduce the replacement rates at farms significantly by improving the conception rates & improve the lactation yield & length both. Change in animal appearance with an increase in conceive rate in just 60-80 days was an eyeopener for all because animals which were considered as liabilities have now become assets. Dairy farmers are saying that our solutions are changing the personality of animals which was something very new for me.
At DSM, we strongly believe in sustainability & to fit into the ecosystem, the dairy industry has to prove that it is sustainable. The new position of WE MAKE IT POSSIBLE is a perfect fit to support the sustainability drive of Dairy industry & world. The dairy industry is on the verge of transformation & it is going to remain an integral part of Protein supply for the human population. It will be a solution & we will be a part of the solution because we will play a significant role in making it sustainable by improving the lifetime performance of animals. Let’s create brighter lives for the entire globe not only for today but for generations to come.
If not us, who?
If not now, when?
So, let’s make it possible!
Thanks & Best Regards
Shekhar
Business Manager- Ruminants-India
