MILK Symposium Introduction: Dairy production in developing countries

摘要

In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), dairyproduction is highly valued, and demand for milk isprojected to continue to increase markedly over thenext few decades. This presents a tremendous opportunityto improve the nutrition, health, incomes, andlivelihoods of millions of people with the high-qualityprotein and bioavailable micronutrients in dairy products.However, low dairy consumption levels, due to lowaffordability, accessibility, and availability, still typifyseveral LMICs. This is caused by inadequate feeding,management, and genetics; poor transport, cooling,and processing infrastructure; unconducive policy environments;and sociocultural and demographic factors.Strategies to address some of these factors were presentedat the MILK Symposium hosted by the Feed theFuture Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems duringthe 2019 American Dairy Science Association AnnualMeeting. The papers presented are full manuscripts inthis Special Issue of the Journal of Dairy Science. Theyaddress the importance of dairy products for humanhealth, strategies to address feed, management, health,and food safety challenges in dairy production systems,and sustainability of dairy production in LMICs. Theycollectively show how strategic interventions can lead tomarked improvements in dairy production in developingcountries. These will ultimately contribute to meetingthe growing global demand for milk and to achievementof the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.