FGV Targets to Produce 30,000 litres of Fresh Milk per Day in First Half 2021
KUALA LUMPUR, 29 DECEMBER 2020 – FGV Holdings Berhad (FGV) through its subsidiary FGV Dairy Farm Sdn Bhd (FGVDF) is positioned for strong growth in its venture into fresh milk processing and the dairy farming business. This is consistent with the successful implementation of a fully integrated dairy farm project in Linggi, Negeri Sembilan, which has significantly increased FGV’s focus in the business under the Integrated Farming sector.
FGVDF recently received an additional 130 crossbred dairy heifers imported from Australia, which are a hybrid of Jersey and Friesian dairy cattle breeds, amounting to a total of 258 dairy herd size. This shipment of cattle is to fulfill the higher volume of fresh milk production as well as the increase in local demand, especially by the HORECA (Hotel, Restaurant and Cafe) market segment.
Dato’ Haris Fadzilah Hassan, Group Chief Executive Officer of FGV said in less than nine months since the inception of the dairy farm project in March 2020, the premium house brand “Bright Cow” has been processing more than 500,000 litres of fresh milk for local consumption, contributed by the fresh milk produced by FGV’s Linggi dairy farm and supplied by external dairy farms.
“Our fresh milk production in Linggi, will see the opening of a brand new fresh milk factory with a processing capacity of 30,000 litres per day. We have also installed an automated milking parlour and a cloud-based daily milk recording system to ensure the quality of our dairy products and the productivity of our dairy farm. These efforts are scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2021,” said Haris Fadzilah.
The overall upgrading work for FGV’s Linggi dairy farm is almost complete, with improvements on the farm’s infrastructure, feedstock areas, milking parlour and cattle barn, while the upgrading work for the calf barn is 100 percent complete. The ongoing enhancements shall be finalised in the near future together with Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) and the foundation for Food Safety System Certification 22000 (FSSC 22000) certifications.
Several new Bright Cow product formulations, flavours and packaging are also in the pipeline and are now undergoing product testing and stability tests prior to launch which is targeted to take place in April 2021. Bright Cow dairy products are now available online with no minimum order on www.fgvdairyfarm.com.
Under the National Dairy Industry Development Programme, the government aims to ensure self-sufficiency in domestic fresh milk productions by 2025. This gives an opportunity for organisations such as FGV to benefit from import substitution and aspire to become a significant industry player for locally produced fresh milk in Malaysia.
At the same time, FGV’s initiatives are in line with the government’s vision for shared prosperity by offering contract farming opportunities among cattle farmers in the country.