– BBB winner reveals big plans.
BELIEVE Begin Become winner, Mduduzi Dludlu says he has decided to go big with his goat dairy business.
He estimates that the costs of setting up the business, after the pilot stage, will now be close to E500 000.
“After winning the competition, what naturally follows is the implementation of the business plan, as 12 judges have confirmed that it is indeed a viable business. However, I know that it is going to be a long process since this is a new product in the local market,” Dludlu said.
He added that there would be too much advertising involved, as there is a need to change people’s mindsets and direct them towards new products in the local market.
For a start, Dludlu said they would increase the number of dairy goats to at least 100. “Dairy experts have told us that one needs a higher goat number in order to make it in the business. Currently, we have 10 goats in the farm which were used during the pilot project,” he said.
He further adds that each of the dairy goats would cost between E2 000 and E3 000. Once in milk at the farm, the goats are expected to produce 1 960 litres of milk per week. Besides goat milk, DM farmers (trade name) will produce cheese and yoghurt made from this product.
As a winner of the 2007 edition of the BBB competition, Dludlu won a total of E180 000. And with his business costs set to rise to about E500 000, he says he is optimistic that banks will fund his venture as he now has the elusive collateral.
The 28-year-old entrepreneur says he decided to go big as a way of handling the competition. Dludlu said part of the DM farmers’ long-term plan is to establish a milk collection centre, through which his business will benefit other smaller dairy goat farmers.
“However, that will not be easy as we have to set-up a system that will ensure that we harvest the best produce from the farmers that conform to the standards that will be set,” he adds.
Dludlu, who is an Electrical Engineering graduate of Vaal University of Technology, said he fell in love with the business three years ago.
“And since then, I have been doing research on the development of the dairy goat business. My ultimate dream will be to see the goat industry in Swaziland being revolutionarised and helping a lot of our people get out of poverty,” he said.
Dludlu will be working full-time on the business and he hopes all things will fall in place, come the new year.
. . . about goat dairy products
GOAT husbandry has been part of agriculture since almost the first use of domestic animals and presently, its popularity is increasing throughout the world.
Further, it is worthwhile to compare the milk of goats with that of cows and note benefits or limitations which may result from differences found. Goat’s milk derives many of its most distinctive properties from its lipid fraction.
However, the quality and quantity of feeds, genetics season, stage of lactation, etc. all influence the average percentage of goat milk fat.
In terms of cholesterol, goat’s milk appears to offer a specific distinction in comparison to cow’s milk, which typically contains about 14 to 17 mg cholesterol per 100 g milk, while goat’s milk is more usually recorded at 11 to 25 mg per 100 gram of milk.
Research carried out at the Department of Physiology of the University of Granada (USA) has revealed that goat milk has more beneficial properties to health than cow milk. Among these properties, it helps to prevent ferropenic anaemia (iron deficiency) and bone demineralisation (softening of the bones).
It is also reported to be more suitable for HIV positive people and others suffering lactose intolerance.
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