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| Wednesday, 1 September 2004 |
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Production to commence in early November: Okanda invests Rs 767m on milk factory in Puttalam By Shirajiv Sirimane The newly formed Wayamba Development Farming Corporation Ltd, has invested Rs. 767 million to construct a milk processing factory in Puttalam. Board of Investment approval has been granted for the project. A subsidiary of Okanda Investment Company, initial construction work has already commenced. "We are hoping to commence production in early November," said the Chairman Finance, Okanda De Silva. Most of the machinery had been manufactured in Sri Lanka under the guidance of a Netherlands technical expert and the motors were imported from Italy. He said that the project would be completed in three stages and the first phase will process 1,000 litres of fresh milk. "Initially we are targeting the North Western province. Our product range would include fresh milk, Yoghurt and curd and would be marketed under the trade name Okanda Dairies," he said. The second stage would include an extension of the factory to produce 10,000 litres of fresh milk. "We would be also producing cheese and butter in addition to our product range in the second stage," he said. The company has also received approval from the Ministry of Agriculture to import 500 buffaloes from India. A 300 acre land has been acquired to grow grass to feed the cattle. "We are also hoping to distribute some of the buffaloes to villagers to maintain them and sell us the milk," he said. The project will generate over 400 direct and indirect employment opportunities. One of the major problems faced by dairy farm owners is the acute shortage of fresh milk. This is one reason why Sri Lanka cannot be self-sufficient in milk production. The farmers too are reluctant to rare cattle since they are not assured of a market. Unlike some of the fruits and vegetables milk has to be refrigerated within 24 hours and the farmers do not have this facility. He said that they guarantee framers of a market and expect more people to take to this business. "We are also planning to provide cows to them on an instalment basis," he said. |
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