…as company aims to be competitive in local, regional market
Operations at the new Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), state-of-the-art US$20 million dairy farm the, first of its kind in the Caribbean will be centered around the use of modern technology and farming practices. The use of these practices is part of a strategic move to ensure the facility is both resilient and efficient as DDL aligns itself to be a key supplier in the local and regional dairy market.
Speaking to members of the media during a tour of the site on Sunday, DDL Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Komal Samaroo noted that science and technology will be the backbone of the project. Once completed, he highlighted that the facility will take the spotlight as one of the most advanced and efficient dairy farms in Guyana and the Caribbean.
Some of the grass being grown at the farm
“This project is built on the basis of quality and competitiveness; hence we are using science and technology to make this the most efficient dairy farm, certainly in Guyana and I believe this region.”
Providing an insight on some of the features the farm will have once fully completed, was DDL’s Project Manager of the Administrative Division, Darrell Manickchand. He highlighted that the dairy farm will be equipped with two cow sheds. These sheds, he noted will provide shelter for the cows and also reduce their movements which allows them to expend more energy towards producing milk.
“These are not grazing cows they will be in the shed well fed, less movements for them so more of their energy goes towards milk production. One of these cow sheds will be about 80,000 square feet, we will have our own veterinarian here and our own milking parlor.”
He added that the farm will also be equipped with its own storage and treatment facility. “So as the cows consume their food, we basically carry them out and milk them, we also have a storage and treatment facility where the milk will be cold stored and then we transport it to our diamond plant.”
In a move to ensure the farm is self-sufficient, Darrell explained that manure produced in the cow sheds will be transported to another facility called a “Cow manure lagoon” where it will be stored and then used on the crop field at a later date.
“So the farm itself is self-sustaining, basically all of the cow manure that is produced in the cow sheds will be scraped off, diluted and then pumped into a cow manure lagoon as we call it. From there it will be pumped back into the field as a natural source of fertiliser.”
Moreover, as it relates to water consumption on the farm, the facility will be equipped with several wells within its parameters. Notably the facility will also be outfitted with a fresh water irrigation lagoon which will store storm water during the rainy seasons, Guyana Times understands that this lagoon will also store water extracted from the wells to ensure the farm is well sourced with water particularly during the dry season.
As it relates to the food that will be used to feed the cows, Darrell explained that the farm will produce its own feed stock. To achieve this, DDL has already cleared two massive plots of land that will house some 4 varieties of grass as well as sweet corn which will be used to feed the cows.
Manickchand explained, that these crops will be prepared using two harvesting methods, this he noted will ensure that the farm is always equipped with a adequate amount of feed stock for the cows regardless of the weather conditions.
“So, the two methods of preparing the food for the cows are, we can have it be done by baling, we have a hay baler basically cuts the grass and bales it up when we have good weather, the bale can typically last for about six months, so that goes for storage. The other method is for when we have bad weather and this is called silage, that now, is when its cut and prepared, it goes under shrink wrap and that can be stored for longer periods up to two years.”
One of the grasses that is being grown on the farm is the Guinea Grass (Megathyrsus Maximus) which a fast-growing palatable leafy grass, commonly used to feed livestock due to its good nutritional value.
Additionally, to reduce the impact of weather and climate shocks, the farm is equipped with its own weather station, that is capable of recoding conditions such as sunshine, rain fall and humidity. According to Manickchand, this data will then be transferred to one of the stations at the farm where it will be analysed and used for future weather predictions.
“We have to monitor the weather, so we have a data logger which is a small weather station that remotely sends the information to our site office. This device tracks the amount of sunshine and stuff like that. That data goes into our computer systems so we know how last year would have performed so we can say ok we had wet season during these months and dry season during these months, so in the future we can plan for it.”
Meanwhile, the highly anticipated state-of-the-art US$20 million dairy farm, the first of its kind in the Caribbean, which is being built by DDL, is slated to supply the local and regional market by the third quarter of 2025. The facility, which is located at Moblissa along the Soesdyke-Linden Highway stemmed from an agreement which was signed in February, 2023 by DDL subsidiary Tropical Orchard Product Company Limited (TOPCO) and the LR Group of Israel.
