Belarus dairy industry to switch to high-tech dairy complexes in next five years

During the meeting, Aleksandr Lukashenko asked how his instructions for the construction of dairy complexes in Minsk Oblast were being carried out. All in all, 20 facilities are planned to be built here by the end of the year. Not only the region but also the capital city is involved in this work. The investments by Minsk city are estimated at Br100 million.

"In the next five years, the entire dairy industry will switch to high-tech dairy complexes," the president recalled his instruction. “You see that people do not stay in the countryside. There will be fewer and fewer of them. This is a global trend. Since there are fewer people, it is necessary to switch to high-tech dairy breeding. The quality of the products depends on this. So is your income. We must entirely give up on these old cowsheds that are bad for cattle or people who work there. We will solve this problem in the next five years."

As Minsk Mayor Vladimir Kukharev reported, the first dairy complex was put into operation just a few days ago. The readiness of the remaining objects is 70% and higher. They are slated for commission this year.

"What is the best optimal price for this dairy complex?” the head of state asked. “We appreciate you and the city for finding the money. It is clear that Minsk Oblast feeds the city of Minsk, and you have allocated money for construction. But you don't have extra money either."

According to Vladimir Kukharev, the cost of one complex for 800-1,200 head is over Br8 million. Construction and installation works cost Br5.5 million. "The project was estimated at Br12 million. But we found ways to bring the price down to Br8 million. We gave up on extras. A lot was done in the economical way. We reduced the construction time: from 18 months to 10 months. That's how we got such a figure," the Minsk mayor said.

Earlier some regions, in particular Vitebsk Oblast, had problems with the project timeframe due to long approvals in various departments. The president asked whether Minsk Oblast had faced such issues.

"We did. But we are working to solve these issues," Governor Aleksandr Turchin replied. “If we follow the generally established path, then the construction of a complex will take two years. Today we are taking all kinds of ways, sometimes without waiting for some approvals. The main thing is to get the project off the ground."