Ilimo milk to hit city supermarkets soon

Milk from Ilimo Dairy Farm in Central is expected to be in retail shops in Port Moresby soon at about half the price of imported milk.
Innovative Agro Industries business development manager Gallit Tamir told The National that the idea was to make local milk affordable to as many people as possible.
“It will have a shelf life of 12 to 14 days so there is plenty of time,” Tamir said.
“The biggest advantage is that people can be able to afford milk on a daily basis and do not have to stock up on it.
“We are going to have one-litre bottles and 250ml, which is like one cup for those that may not have a fridge and may just want to drink it.”
Tamir said getting the best milk depended on having “happy cows”.
“Ilimo is not a simple farm as people might think with a few cows grazing, but is a state-of-the-art facility,” she said.
“The farm has 200 hectares of land that provides feed.
“We have around 500 cows and 200 calves and they are under sheds and are not grazing because of the heat stress. The female calves will be our future herd.
“The formula is simple: If you want good quality milk you want happy and healthy cows. We don’t want them to look for water or food but to have it all provided in their sheds.
“Ilimo is a farm on an industrial scale. Cows are milked three times a day. The fresh milk goes straight to processing and there, the only thing we do is pasteurise the milk so people can drink it.
“That’s why it tastes fresh because it is a 100 per cent milk.
“We are starting in Port Moresby before elsewhere in country.
“The idea is to get everyone familiar with their very own milk before expanding.”