PRODUCTIVITY AND TECHNICAL EFFICIENCY OF DAIRY FARMING IN SOME SELECTED AREAS OF DHAKA DISTRICT IN BANGLADESH

Abstract

Livestock is one of the sectors in Bangladesh that is expanding the fastest. Dairy farming has become more important because of its numerous uses. Monthly revenue is guaranteed in dairy farming. Milk is commonly consumed by humans as it is a good source of nutrients. However, the supply of milk in our nation does not keep up with the demand. Milk production must be increased to close the gap between supply and demand. By improving the technical efficiency of milk production using the existing systems, milk production can be increased. Hence the objective of the present study was to identify the socio-economic characteristics of dairy farmers, measure the productivity and technical efficiency of dairy production, and address the challenges faced by farmers in the study area as well as to suggest policy options to minimize the problems. A Cobb-Douglas stochastic frontier production function was used to accomplish these objectives. Primary data was collected from 120 randomly selected farmers from the Savar Upazila in Dhaka district. The results indicated that the coefficients of parameters such as family labor cost, hired labor cost, concentrate feed cost, roughage feed cost and utility cost were positive, with family labor cost and utility costs being highly significant. On the other hand, the coefficient of veterinary cost was negative and highly significant. The technical inefficiency effect model revealed that factors such as education, farm experience, training and veterinary service had negative coefficients, indicating that they help in reducing the technical inefficiency of dairy farmers. In terms of the challenges faced by farmers, the high feed cost, lack of capital and lack of marketing facilities were identified as the top three concerns. To address these challenges and enhance dairy production, it is recommended to provide subsidies for purchasing inputs like better breeds of milking cows, cultivating green fodder, buying concentrated feed etc. Also provide training facilities about dairy modern farming, adequate veterinary services and offer accessible credit. This study will provide an important insight for the concerned authority and help to boost dairy production