Mazaraat Artisan Cheese production to produce the country’s first organic cheese at its newly established manufacturing facility in Malang
The Indonasia cheese project brings together Denmark’s agricultural expertise with local Indonesian partners to showcase the opportunities within organic dairy farming in Indonesia. Mazaraat Artisan Cheese processes the certified organic milk from the KPSP cooperative at its newly established manufacturing facility in Malang to produce the country’s first organic cheese.
A milestone for the dairy sector in this country with a population of 273 million is the launch of the first Indonesian organic cheese production lines in August 2023. In order to increase the efficiency of dairy farming and unlock the potential of organic production in Indonesia, Danida-funded Mazaraat Artisan Cheese has produced the cheese.
Initially, the project focused on capacity building and supporting local farmers in the dairy cooperative KPSP as they transitioned from conventional to organic farming. An Indonesian certification body LeSOS, Bina Swadaya, and the cooperative worked together to complete the project with the assistance of Danish company SEGES Innovation and ICOEL.
“Converting the first smallholder farms in Indonesia, with only 3-5 cows, from conventional to certified organic dairy production represents a significant step forward. The Indonesian organic standards have to reflect the local context where many of the farms are located in villages, and without fields surrounding the barns. But we have outlined the basics of organic milk production in terms of animal welfare, feed and concentrate production. This achievement is a result of a great partnership with KPSP and Bina Swadaya as well as from numerous stakeholders all along the dairy value chain,” says Lisbeth Hendricksen, director of innovation from SEGES Innovation.
by end of 2023, Indonesian dairy consumption is expected to grow by 6%, and 80% of it is imported, indicating a local desire to make dairy production more efficient. In addition, the Indonesian government has set specific targets for organic food production, aiming to increase it from 2% to 20% by 2024.
The Danish food cluster has a long and celebrated tradition of producing organic dairy of the highest quality. In this project, we are combining the expertise and data acquired over decades with local players bringing an entrepreneurial spirit and market knowledge to the benefit of the whole Indonesian dairy sector,” says International Chief Consultant at the Danish Agriculture and Food Council, Jeppe Søndergaard Pedersen.
The milk volume is set to increase to 250 litres per day by the end of the year and to 6000 litres per day by 2026 from the current 60 litres. With its experience working with both organic and artisanal cheese categories, Arla Foods, the world’s largest organic dairy producer, contributes advanced processing expertise and go-to-market support. An official partnership was formed following research trips to Denmark in 2018 and 2019, in which representatives of the Indonesian government and KPSP farmers gained insights about organic dairy production.
