ABSTRACT
This research is important because milk production is considered as an activity of nutritional, social and economic importance in Kosovo. Cow's milk dominates the production of raw milk in Kosovo. Dairy cows (about 132,500 heads) produce 277,599 tons of milk. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of Covid-19 on the performance of cow milk producers in Kosovo. It was used descriptive and quantitative survey. The random sampling technique was used to select respondents from a 242 dairy farms in the seven regions of Kosovo (Gjilan, Prishtina, Ferizaj, Peja, Gjakova, Prizren, and Mitrovica). Interviews have included the farms with the capacity of 5-120 dairy cows. Data on milk production, sales and farm incomes for each farm were recorded during the period of January-April 2021 and the comparison was made for a calendar year with that of 2019/2020. The average milk produced by farmers per year was 73052.94 liters in 2019, and it decreased to 71255.27 liters in 2020. In 2020, 93.1% of farmers said they have not been able to sell all the milk they produced, on average the surveyed farms could not sell milk at all in the amount of 12503.43 liters per year in 2020, and this represents an increase of 275 times compared to the amount of the previous year where there was only 45.38 liters per year of unsold milk destined for the market. The average farm revenues from milk were € 13892.37 in 2020, while in 2019 it was considerably higher, with an average of 19881.49 € per farm. Farmers reported that the restrictive measures taken as a result of Covid-19 have affected milk production negatively in terms of sales, revenues and returns. Advisory services should sensitize farmers to farm diversification so that losses from such situations as pandemics are kept to a minimum. © 2023, Consulting and Training Center - KEY. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the level of education and experience in animal husbandry in terms of waste management on dairy farms in Kosovo during the Covid-19, the case of Gjilan region. It is a descriptive and quantitative study. Random samples were taken in 71 dairy farms in three municipalities of the Gjilan region. Surveys include farms where 5-78 dairy cows are raised. Data on milk production, waste management from detergents, organic manure, cleaning rags, farm certification and water analysis are included. Datas for each farm were recorded during the period of February-April 2020. During these period farmers' reported that the restrictive measures taken as a result of Covid-19 did not have any negative impact on milk production, however, 26.8% of farmers interviewed reported that milk production was reduced. Further, it was observed a major mismanagement of farm waste that was the main focus of the research: 80.3% of farmers stated that compost waste comes out of the farm and is distributed freely in the environment around the farm.