APA – Dakar (Senegal) Training in entrepreneurship and good hygiene practices in dairy production should enable beneficiaries to better organise their business and increase their income.
The commune of Yang-Yang, in the Linguere area, 305 km north-east of Dakar, was the venue for a training course in entrepreneurship and good hygiene practices in dairy production. The initiative, supported by AICCRA – Senegal, brought together around fifty women working in the dairy value chain.
“Through this training, we want to instil in them an entrepreneurial spirit. It’s time for women to change their practices. We know that they control their activities. So our job will be to help them modernise their production,” explained Dr. Sadibou Sow, a trainer in entrepreneurship and agricultural value chains at the ‘Institut Sup’rieur de Formation Agricole et Rurale’ (Higher Institute of Agricultural and Rural Training,) at the Alioune Diop University in Bambey.
To do this, Dr. Sow used the andragogical approach. Unlike traditional training methods, which are based on learning outcomes, andragogy focuses more on motivating learners and understanding their needs. The underlying idea is that adults are more likely to learn if they are engaged in an activity that has personal meaning for them.
“Thanks to this approach, they have highlighted their problems and proposed solutions. From now on, they should be able to negotiate their selling prices effectively in order to increase their income. They will also be able to work together to find solutions to any difficulties they may encounter,” the trainer said.
According to Dr. Fafa Sow, AICCRA project focal point at the ‘Institut Senegalais de Recherche Agricole’ (ISRA), this two-day training course was of vital importance because it was aimed at the main target of the AICCRA project. Each of the beneficiaries has at least two milking cows and milking goats, and they supply milk to the Yang-Yang collection centre.
“The know-how they have learnt during this training will empower them. They will be able to identify production costs, as well as the expected benefits from milk production activities. This will enable them to find strategies for improvement if necessary,” he said.
Introduction to yoghurt processing
The two-day meeting also provided an opportunity for the trainers to review good hygiene practices in herd milking, milk collection and transport, in order to maintain the quality of the product. The session was followed by an introduction to yoghurt making.
“To make yoghurt, the milk must be pasteurised at temperatures of between 65° and 90° before being cooled to between 45° and 43°. It is then inoculated with lactic ferments before being poured into a container that is hermetically sealed and left to rest for at least five hours. During this period, the lactic bacteria will thicken or coagulate the milk to produce yoghurt,” explained the ISRA researcher.
Dr. Fafa Sow took the opportunity to remind women that they must go through this pasteurisation procedure, even if the milk is fresh and ready to drink. This is to ensure the safety of this foodstuff.
The two days of discussions also provided an opportunity to promote other types of milk, such as goat’s milk. “There’s a ranch smell in goat’s milk that prevents people from becoming familiar with it. Heat treatment gets rid of that. Better still, processing this milk, with its nutritional virtues for both infants and adults, means it can be preserved, enjoyed for consumption or sold. It’s a quality product that’s very much in demand on the market, but there aren’t enough suppliers to meet the demand,’ Dr. Sow stressed.
According to Dr. Sow, by processing this milk, all these prejudices will be transformed into something positive, because the smell they are talking about contributes greatly to the quality of the yoghurt and cheese made from it.
ARD/te/abj/APA