Tatiana Antonenko, International Dairy Magazine

Spectrum of relation to private owners of cows in recent years changed from absolute disregard to the exaggerated attention. Those of professional dairy community, for whom the cow in a private yard is a «source of raw material», first miffed and said that the support of such producer at all is a nonsense, because it is impossible to achieve quality of milk from cows kept in the private sector. It makes no sense to spend resources on hopeless case, and all efforts should be targeted exclusively on building of farms. Some approached to the problem more reasonably, saying that there is dairy business (this is where the milk makes money), and there is the solution of social problems of the village, which should be taken care of the state. In particular, creating conditions for the development of dairy business. And if we consider the cow as a tool to solution of social problems, its housing may be a kind of rural hobby, and the goal in this case is to make people to do something. And talks about money, about serious money can not go. About poor quality of milk collected from the yards was mentioned so much that among dairy processors to mention about taking «the milk from the population» is impolite. Those processors that managed to sign contracts with agricultural enterprises were proud of the high percentage of processing of such milk (qualitative and, of course, more expensive). Those who have been forced to take milk from the population were quiet.

In discussions and attempts to solve global problems of the industry years passed. When recently finally became noticeable the increase of milk production at agricultural enterprises and farm building became though not very wide but the practice. And if to create some conditions, one can achieve even quite decent quality of milk ... There was a U-turn to those who all these years, while there were discussions, kept cows, rented milk, cull cows (when it became too expensive to keep them), spilled milk on the road, sometimes said something emotional on camera ... In the dairy community which is always in good shape, because constant innovations of government officials do not let to relax, attempts to somehow structure rural grandparents with their cows into something more or less controlled were renewed. Cooperatives began to be formed .

More you can read in «Milk and Farm» magazine #4 (11), August 2012.