Dutch dairy cooperative Royal FrieslandCampina has announced a new investment of $26.9m into its operations in Nigeria in a major initiative to support the Nigerian dairy industry.

Alongside its partner FrieslandCampina WAMCO, Royal FrieslandCampina is investing $26.9m in its evaporated milk and ready-to-drink milk factory in Oyo State. As part of its Dairy Development Project (DDP), the company works with 3,500 dairy farmers in the state. This investment will also help the DDP to turn another 500 local pastoralists into settled dairy farmers with longer term plans to expand the programme nationally.

Managing Director of FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Ben Langat announced the investment in Abuja during a visit to Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osinbajo. Mr Langat said, “Our company is fully committed to working with local farmers to grow local milk production”, explaining that four model farms with crossbreed cows have been established to improve local milk collection. Mr Osinbajo said “the plan of extending the Dairy Development Programme to other states is extremely important”.

The DDP was launched in 2011 to counter a large fresh milk deficit in the Nigerian dairy industry. National demand is currently estimated at 1.1 billion litres per year but local production is only 400 million litres annually, leaving 70% of dairy products to be imported at a cost of $1.3bn per year. Royal FrieslandCampina intends to reduce the deficit in milk production with this new investment.

Royal FrieslandCampina was formed in December 2008 from the merger of two Dutch companies, Friesland Foods and Campina, which both date back to the 19th century. FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria is a collaboration between RFC and Nigerian company West Africa Milk Company Nigeria (WAMCO). Its flagship brand is Peak Milk which was launched in 1954 and it also produces Three Crowns milk. The company is Nigeria’s leading milk manufacturing company.

In the summer of 2017, Nigerian Dangote Group announced plans to invest $800m into the Nigerian dairy industry over the next three years.