Rabat -
Ayoub, a grocery owner in a popular neighborhood on the outskirts of Rabat, received only 10 packages of milk, which is his daily ration from distributors.
While his share in the past months was unlimited and from various brands, the situation has changed today, and hardly the first hour of the morning passes until he runs out of his milk cartons.
He tells Al Jazeera Net that he is trying to manage this small number of milk by distributing it to his customers, and he does not find an explanation to answer their questions about the shortage of this substance, which is known to be abundant in the country.
And the owners of food stores found themselves in a confrontation with consumers who were wandering around the shops in their neighborhoods to find half a liter of milk.
The Kingdom is witnessing a decline in milk production by up to 60% compared to previous years, according to what the producers of this substance confirmed.
Professionals attribute this shortage to the severe drought in the country and the high prices of feed and powdered milk on the international market.
severe shortage of milk
Parliamentarians from the majority and the opposition directed questions to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development, inquiring about the reasons for the severe shortage of milk in most commercial points of sale in Morocco with the implementation of an impressive price increase, inquiring about the measures that the government will take to support milk production chains to provide this substance while maintaining The purchasing power of citizens.
Faysal Kafsi, head of the Federation of Trade, Professional and Craft Associations in the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region, attributed the decrease in the supply of milk to the national markets due to the drought that the country has witnessed for years and has increased in severity this year, and the high prices of fodder.
Qafsi told Al Jazeera Net that through their constant contact with the proximity trade shops, the production of major companies decreased by half, pointing out that the federation is working on the awareness of traders by inviting them to rationalize the distribution of their share of milk and keep it in good conditions so as not to spoil.
"We contacted the proximity merchants and explained to them the reasons for the situation so that they could explain them to consumers to avoid any confusion in society," he added.
The head of the Federation of Trade, Professional and Craft Associations in the Rabat-Salé-Kenitra region pointed out that the impact of milk scarcity was not very great, and it did not change the habits of most Moroccan citizens because of their consumption of tea more.
For his part, the head of the Federation of Trade Associations and Craftsmen in Morocco, Abdallah Hanafi, explained that the decline in the milk market was accompanied by the manufacturers' raising the prices of milk products.
He told Al Jazeera Net that some shops had reduced their share of milk by half, which created a problem between the merchant in the neighborhood and consumers, because the quantity did not meet their demands.
The spokesman was surprised by the great shortage in the merchants' share of milk packages in return for the successive price increases without any clarifications or explanations from the companies, which, according to him, opened the way for the spread of rumors.
The shortage of milk products is due to the severe drought in the country and the high prices of feed and powdered milk in the international market (Al-Jazeera)
bankrupt cooperatives
Farmers and owners of milk cooperatives are considered the first link in the production of this substance, and they have incurred heavy losses in the past years, which deepened during the current year.
The head of the Federation of Milk and Agricultural Producers, Ahmed Boumkarizia, explains the decrease in the supply of milk to the national markets for various overlapping reasons.
In addition to the drought and the high prices of fodder, the speaker indicates that a large number of farmers have left the sector due to the losses they incurred in recent years, as a result of the manufacturers’ abandonment of milk and its derivatives from acquiring raw milk from producers after the liberalization of the import of powdered milk.
Since 2015, producers have sent letters to the Ministry of Agriculture complaining about the damage they have suffered due to the excessive reliance of some companies on powdered milk imported from abroad to raise their productivity, demanding an increase in the customs tax on the import of this substance.
As a result of this situation, a number of milk cooperatives went bankrupt and farmers sold their cows and stopped practicing this activity.
The drought and the accompanying rise in feed prices exacerbated the situation, as the price of a kilo of fodder moved from 2.5 dirhams to 3 dirhams and then 5 dirhams, while Ahmed Boumkarizia says that the subsidized fodder from the Ministry of Agriculture was of poor quality and caused diseases and weak milk for cows.
According to the spokesman, 75% of milk cooperatives have stopped production and closed their doors until this year, which has led to a 60% drop in milk production.
As for the cooperatives that still practice this activity, their production has significantly decreased and they are still resisting despite the deterioration of the sector.
Boumkarizia added that "cooperatives that used to produce 4 tons of milk per day are now producing only one ton, and cooperatives that used to produce two tons currently only provide 400 liters, like the cooperative that I'm captive to, which affected the supply of milk to the markets."
Morocco is witnessing a decline in milk production by up to 60% compared to previous years (Al Jazeera)
The government is looking for a solution
After their partial abandonment of raw milk and their reliance on powdered milk in manufacturing, the milk manufacturers found themselves facing the high prices of powdered milk in the international market, the high cost of international transportation on the one hand, and the significant decline in the number of cooperatives producing raw milk on the other hand, which prompted them to reduce production. Consequently, there is a shortage of milk in the national market.
This situation prompted the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development to meet this week with professionals in the sector, in order to present the situation and propose measures to overcome it.
The Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement that the milk chain was affected by several factors, especially the drought that the country witnessed, and the increase in the prices of production factors related to the international situation (the consequences of Covid-19 and energy prices).
For his part, Mohamed Loliti, head of the Moroccan Professional Milk Federation, said in a statement to the press after the meeting that the actors in the sector are making efforts to keep supplying the markets, but the chain is experiencing the difficulty of rising costs.
The Ministry of Agriculture agreed with the professionals on a number of measures to overcome the current crisis and ensure the supply of milk to the markets. These measures include:
Continue to promote compound feed support.
Support the milk collection process to increase the volume of processed milk and combat roving.
Promote the establishment of units for the production of sprouted barley (green fodder) to supply livestock breeders at the level of milk production ponds.
Supporting the maintenance of the milk-producing herd.
The ministry also decided to put in place a tracking system in coordination with professionals in order to ensure adequate supply in the market and meet demand.
In addition, other measures related to the development of the milk chain will be taken, including aid and incentives to invest in the sector and valuation, importing dairy cows and producing them locally, artificial insemination, and working on a program for the production of fodder to support local production and other measures.
milk production chain
The milk production chain in Morocco has developed over the past two decades, and this chain contributes to ensuring the country's food security by meeting 96% of the demand, and the consumption rate is 74 liters per capita per year.
According to official data of the Ministry of Agriculture, the number of dairy cows herd has witnessed an important increase since 2008, and settled at about 1.8 million heads in 2015.
According to the same source, this chain provides about 49 million working days per year, and achieves a transaction number estimated at 13 billion dirhams (1.2 billion dollars), and an added value of about 6 billion dirhams (500 million dollars).