Officials at Rwanda Agricultural and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) have called upon farmers to improve milking hygiene in a bid to curb mastitis, a disease affecting dairy cows and leading to rejection of up to 60 percent of milk produced in parts of the Northern and Western provinces by collection centres. Mastitis is usually caused by bacteria that thrive in poor hygiene conditions. These bacteria infect the udder of dairy cows and can contaminate the milk, said Fabrice Ndayisenga, Head of Animal Resources Development and Disease Control at RAB. ALSO READ: Breastfeeding woes: Coping with mastitis Milk from infected animals is not suitable for processing, he added. Figures from the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) show that the increasing prevalence of mastitis among cattle in the Northern and Western provinces has led to 60 per cent of milk produced in the Gishwati area being rejected by milk collection centres. The losses are substantial, given that Gishwati produces between 80,000 and 100,000 litres of milk daily. Assessments conducted by RAB found that some farmers fail to maintain proper hygiene standards, including cleaning cattle sheds and resting areas. Other poor practices include milking cows only once a day or milking only two teats while leaving the other two untouched. RAB has urged farmers to maintain hygiene in cattle sheds and resting areas, wash cows' udders before milking, thoroughly clean milking equipment, and wash their hands properly before handling milk. ALSO READ: Milk production to rise by 135% by 2029 Farmers have also been advised to milk cows at least twice a day. According to experts, milking only once daily increases the risk of udder infections and other health problems. The problem is also linked to some farmers treating animals themselves without professional veterinary guidance. As a result, many of the medicines they use are either ineffective or improperly administered, causing harm to the animals instead of treating them. Ndayisenga has therefore encouraged farmers to seek the services of qualified veterinarians to improve animal health and modernise farming practices. Farmers urged to take responsibility Farming is a business, and the owner of that business is the farmer, not the veterinarian. As a public institution, we provide training, advice and awareness programmes. However, farmers must take responsibility for implementing good practices on their farms, Ndayisenga said. He noted that many farmers are rarely present on their farms and instead rely on casual labourers while managing operations remotely by phone. ALSO READ: Rwanda’s milk production exceeds one million tonnes He said RAB plans to intensify awareness campaigns, provide diagnostic tools and continue training farmers on mastitis prevention and treatment. While medicines are available to treat mastitis, he cautioned that treatment alone is insufficient if poor hygiene practices persist. He added that farmers risk significant financial losses if the disease is neglected. Imagine a cow worth Rwf2 million or Rwf3 million. If it is kept in poor conditions and develops chronic mastitis, the farmer may eventually have no option but to send it to slaughter, where it will fetch a much lower price. ALSO READ: What $100 million project means to Rwanda’s dairy industry Unlike diseases such as Foot-and-Mouth Disease, where government interventions play a major role, mastitis prevention largely depends on day-to-day farm management practices, he said. What farmers say Jean-Pierre Buhuru, a cattle farmer from Musanze District who operates in the Gishwati farming area spanning Rutsiro, Ngororero, Nyabihu and Rubavu districts, said Mastitis is largely linked to the lack of safe water, which remains a major cause of poor hygiene. Water is not available on all farms. Improved access to clean water would help address many diseases associated with poor hygiene,” he noted. He added that training and awareness campaigns are also essential in addressing the problem of mastitis. Abdul Karim Habiyaremye, a model farmer from Rugerero Sector, said they will follow advice given to them to combat mastitis. Numerous government programmes have helped us improve our livestock farming practices. As a result, a cow that used to cost Rwf1 million is now worth up to Rwf5 million. Milk production has also increased significantly, with a single cow producing up to 25 litres of milk per day. We will continue to follow the advice we have received in order to combat mastitis,” he noted. Rwanda aims to increase daily milk production by about 135 per cent, from 2.9 million litres to 6.8 million litres by 2029.
