El Niño Cuts Huila Milk Production by 30%

Milk production in Huila, Colombia, has declined as high temperatures have coincided with lower availability of water and forage. The Huila Cattlemen’s Committee said the department normally produces about 390,000 litres of milk per day, but current output is approximately 120,000 litres below that level.

The reduction represents a fall of around 30% in the volume obtained, according to the committee. Lost production has caused estimated revenue losses of close to 1.6bn Colombian pesos, calculated solely on the basis of the lower quantity of milk produced.

Reduced feed is affecting herd management

Luceni Muñoz Bermeo, the committee’s executive director, said that the animals’ loss of body condition was directly affecting their performance. “In the case of milk, we have already recorded a 30% decrease,” she said.

The shortage of forage has also changed practices on some farms. Some producers have stopped milking particular animals so that the available milk can be given to calves. The measure is intended to prevent a further deterioration in the animals’ body condition, according to the report.

La Plata, Paicol, Garzón, Gigante, Altamira and Tarqui are among the municipalities affected. Other localities in the northern part of Huila have also been included in the reported impact.

Committee requests support for producers

The Huila Cattlemen’s Committee has asked the departmental and national governments, as well as the Ministry of Agriculture, to intervene. Its proposed measures include distributing feed supplements and mineralised salt, along with restarting programmes that subsidise those inputs.

“The forage on the farms is running out and we need to maintain the body condition of these animals,” Muñoz said. The sector said that while high temperatures and difficulties in obtaining feed and water continue, producers will remain exposed to lower marketed volumes and, as a result, reduced income.