The Milkyway to Development (Mælkevejen til udvikling)

Abstract:

Western Sahel is the epicenter of hunger. Sale of milk is key to survival, but when the hungry season peaks during the rainy season, milk is discarded as there is neither capacity to store nor to preserve it. The massive quantities of imported milk powder produced with subsidies in the EU and Latin America put a squeeze on prices and weakens the negotiation position of small scale producers vis-à-vis the dairies. The abolition of EU milk quotas in 2015 will lead to an explosion in EU milk production and will demand new markets. EU dairy enterprises are planning to target the West African market. This will pressure the local producers further. The project will lobby European enterprises to take on a socially responsible approach towards the West African market. A key lobbying tool will be multi-stakeholder dialogues between dairy enterprises, local producers and West African dairies. It is an innovative methodology which will be document by Copenhagen Business School. Furthermore the project will support unions in negotiating fair prices for the small scale producers.