Argentina willing to help dairy farmers

Barbados is set to receive assistance from Argentina, aimed at helping
to further develop the local dairy industry and boosting milk
production.

And so eager is the South American country to lend its expertise to
Barbados, that Ambassador of Argentina to Barbados, Gustavo Pandiani
told The Barbados Advocate that once flights resume to Barbados, his
country is prepared to send experts in the field to the island to
assist the dairy farmers. This technical support, he said, is being
facilitated through cooperation between the two governments and could
be available in as little as two months’ time.

“... Once we receive the proposal from Barbados outlining their needs,
we just need 30 days. If you give me the paper tomorrow, in 30 days
we’ll have my man on the ground. When is he going to be able to fly? I
don’t know, it depends on coronavirus, but during this waiting time,
the Barbados side would be able to prepare the projects. For the next
30 days or so we are not going to have any flights, so use these 30
days to prepare the proposal and send it to me. Once you send it to
me, in 30 days I will have my man on the ground – that’s only two
months. If we do it now we are going to be immediately ready when the
first flight is available,” the Ambassador added.

Pandiani, who has been quarantined in his homeland after being
stranded there as a result of the COVID-19 shutdown, reflecting on a
recent virtual meeting with stakeholders in the Barbados dairy
industry and officials from the agricultural sector in his country,
noted that the farmers revealed a number of challenges which need to
be addressed if the sector is to grow. He said the fragile state of
the sector was compounded by such issues as genetics; nutrition,
including the quality of the forage and the declining herds, but he is confident
that Argentina canhelp Barbados to develop a more sustainable milk sector,
which he said could also assist in providing jobs for Barbadians.

“We have a very strong sector in Argentina, probably one of the
strongest sectors; we are mainly an agricultural country and we want
to pass on our experience. We want to share with Barbados what we used
to solve our problems and to help the farmers. For me it is very
important to help the farmers... The economic situation in Barbados
will be very hard after COVID and it is going to take time to recover,
so as we did with apiculture and the fishing community, we are hoping
to do with the farmers now,” he indicated.

Pandiani continued, “If you want an expert in water I can send you an
expert in water. If you want an expert in forage I can send you an
expert in forage, if you want experts in both I can send you both, but
you need to prioritise. The objective is very concrete, it is to help
the farmers produce more and better milk, more quantity and more
quality”.

Meanwhile, referring to the importation two weeks ago of 159 pregnant
heifers, Pandiani, while lauding the farmers for making the effort to
help boost milk production in this way, said his hope is that Barbados
would not have to go this route again, but would be able to grow the
herds.

“In this project the limit is the sky. If the solution is to import
some animals, we will do that. But I don’t think the problem is solved
by importing animals, I think you have to develop your own genetics
because maybe an animal that is ok for Argentina won’t work in
Barbados because of the climate – the genetics may not be
good for the Caribbean. The cows are not accustomed to your forage,
your climate, so you need to develop your own herd and that’s where I
think we can help,” the Argentine Ambassador stated.
(JRT)