Dutch dairy cooperative Royal FrieslandCampina has announced plans to invest in an evaporated milk and ready-to-drink (RTD) milk plant in Nigeria.

The €23m investment is reported to be part of the company’s Dairy Development Programme (DDP).

FrieslandCampina’s CEO Hein Schumacher made the announcement during his visit to Nigeria’s capital city.

foodbev.com quoted FrieslandCampina’s Nigerian business managing director Ben Langat telling the country’s Leadership newspaper: “Four model farms with crossbreed cows have been established to improve local milk collection across its five milk collection centres.

“Four model farms with crossbreed cows have been established to improve local milk collection across its five milk collection centres.”

“Our company is fully committed to working with local farmers to grow local milk production and ultimately ensure that Nigerians continue to benefit from the nutritious content of milk.”

The company’s DDP programme aims to help transfer knowledge and increase sustainable livelihoods for communities. Besides the new milk plant in Nigeria, the firm has worked with 3,500 dairy farmers in more than 90 farming communities in Oyo State.

As part of the DDP model, FrieslandCampina further plans to transform another 500 pastoralists to settled dairy farmers.

FrieslandCampina developed the model in a bid to offer training to farmers for improved milk quality and farm productivity.

DDP is currently active in China, Russia, Romania, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Pakistan with focus on other activities such as securing access to the market.

The programme was initiated by the company in the 1980s, and is said to have benefitted millions of dairy farmers.