The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands

Milk and dairy products have a very important place in human health and nutrition both in the world and in our country. Turkey is becoming a country of milk and dairy products with increasing the number of cows being milked and the increase in the product obtained per animal.

With a raw milk production of 23.2 million tons, Turkey is one of the ten largest milk producers in the world. However, the amount of milk produced by small producers is gradually decreasing. Feed and other expenses required for milk production are expensive. In addition, farmers have difficulty reaching the capital required to purchase modern equipment. Animal health problems that significantly reduce milk production, lack of health services and improper hygiene put milk quality at risk. Small-scale milk producers should be supported by providing them with access to comprehensive information in these areas. 

Contributing greatly to the producers in addition to animal husbandry, milk is also a unique product in terms of adequate and balanced nutrition of the society. Therefore, the quality of milk is of great importance for both public health and sustainability of production.

At the same time, it is a known fact that milk and dairy products have an important place in the nutrition of all age groups. In order to maximize the all benefits of milk, which is of great importance, it is necessary for our animals to be healthy, properly fed, and our producers to be conscious about hygiene and sanitation.

Pınar has always believed in the importance of education in the production of high quality and healthy milk and dairy products. Since its establishment in 1973, Pınar has been supporting education to raise the awareness of producers. These training, awareness-raising and producer support programs have been carried out under the direction of Pınar Institute, within the framework of the “The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands” project in cooperation with Pınar Dairy & Çamlı Feed Animal Husbandry Co. since 2014 within the framework of public-university-industry cooperation.

Main Target of the Project

The aim of the project is to maximize all the benefits of milk by raising the quality, value and efficiency of the produced milk by raising the awareness of the producers about animal health, nutrition, hygiene and sanitation. It is aimed that, through these efforts, contributions to the protection of public health will be made and the welfare of producers will be increased along with the increase in quality and productivity.

Social, Environmental and Economic Aspects of the Project

Even though herbal products come to mind in the first when it comes to agriculture, the production of animal products constitutes an important part of agriculture, especially in our country.

In this context, milk producers, one of the most important elements of milk and dairy products production, are among the most important stakeholders of Pınar.

Providing training sessions and supporting its produces since its establishment, Pınar has placed this training and support process as a comprehensive business model within the scope of sustainability activities with “The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands” project. 

The comprehensiveness of this project arises from its impact on both social, environmental and economic fields.

From the social aspect, the project means meeting the dairy producers' need for training and expertise, increasing the level of knowledge and competence related to their own business and thus achieving more efficient and high-quality milk production. Local training sessions organized in the producers' own region also makes producers feel valuable and reinforces the trust and sense of belonging towards the brand. In addition, the cooperation between the Provincial Directorates of Agriculture, Dairy Unions and Cooperatives in the region strengthens the relations between stakeholders.

From the environmental aspect, the project contributes to the sustainability of nature and the environment with the aim of efficient use of resources. Especially considering the effects of agricultural activities on climate change, efficient production is of great importance at every stage from producer to end consumer. 

Considering the economic aspect of the project; factors such as the decrease in animal diseases in farms and consequently in medication and veterinary costs, as well as the decreased loss of milk yield due to fewer diseases, longer use of machinery through proper maintenance, avoiding feeding errors, and improvement of housing conditions mean more efficient production by producers. Efficient production means increased producer welfare through reduced costs and/or increased income.

Activities Carried Out Within the Scope of the Project

• Awareness Raising Trainings (Protection of Animal Health and Milk Quality, Importance of Feeding in Dairy Farming, Milking Practices & Hygiene for Women Producers, Financial Literacy)
• Pilot Areas Practices for Improvements in Quality and Efficiency
• Training of Chiling Center Employees
• Educational Videos for Producers (Birth,Nail Care, Milking Applications)
• Informative Printed Materials (Training Notes, Practical Information Brochure for Dairy Farming, Dairy Farm Good Practice Guidelines)
• Promotional Gifts
• Social Impact Research to Measure Social Benefit

UNDP Business Call to Action Program Cooperation

The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) is a program that provides the knowledge, experience and resources necessary for people to have better living standards, with a particular focus on developing countries.

Business Call to Action (BCtA) is a global leadership platform within UNDP that supports the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals in inclusive and sustainable governance. Companies contribute to their core businesses with specific and measurable solutions for development.

Companies apply to the BCtA platform with a commitment after a specific application process. Within the scope of “The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands” Pınar Dairy became a member of as of April 10, 2017 with the initiative of Pınar Institute and it was linked with Sustainable Development Goals (No Powerty, Zero Hunger, Quality Education, Gender Equality, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Responsible Consumption and Production).

In 2019, the project was one of the 25 projects included in the Impact Champions program by UNDP's Business Call to Action platform.

It was the first time in Turkey that the Social Impact Analysis study carried out within the scope of the project was implemented by considering gender differences, the questionnaires included a broad perspective, the qualitative and quantitative methods were used together in the research, and different groups, including village elders and head person, were included in the research. In addition, linking the research results with the Sustainable Development Goals was the most important factor in the inclusion of the project in the Impact Champions program.

At the same time, it was included as a case study in the research report “Management Practices to Bring Inclusive Business to Scale” conducted by UNDP. After the developments, the blog post that included the impact analysis study of the trainings held within the framework of the project due to their contributions to dairy farming in Turkey was published in The Guardian and took its place among the projects that are shown as an example.

The Impact Lab, developed by the BCtA platform to create case studies of projects in the field of impact measurement with the help of an online tool, conducted the case study of the project "The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands" in partnership with the UNDP Istanbul team.

The target group of the project and the problems of this target group are discussed, then the activities carried out to address the problems and the outputs of the activities are evaluated in the light of the results of the Social Impact Analysis. 

It is the first case study published from Turkey in the system, which currently includes projects of 21 companies globally.

In 2020, it was the only project representing Turkey as an "exemplary inclusive business model" in "The Impact Management Journey" session at the annual forum organized as part of the "United Nations General Assembly Week" events.

Projenin Öne Çıkan Yönleri

What differentiates the Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands project from other similar projects is that the training programs are conducted in the region where the producers are located. Trainings were sometimes held in the form of saloon trainings, but in some regions, trainings were given even in village coffee houses, wedding halls, schools and public educational centers in order to reach the people who could not participate and benefit from these trainings and this situation was observed to be greatly appreciated by the producers.

The project aims to popularize correct practice and to increase the awareness levels by reaching the producers through the above mentioned training sessions. “Milking Practices and Hygiene” trainings are planned as a separate module for women producers in order to strengthen women.

In addition to the trainings, activities were organized in order to carry out one-on-one studies on the basis of quality and efficiency with the producers determined within the scope of Pilot Area Practices in İzmir and Eskişehir provinces with the renewed content. In this context, the quality of milk was measured by analyzing the samples taken from the farms. Regular producer visits were made by expert personnel and best practices were transferred through one-to-one activities and improvements were observed.

As a first in Turkey, within the studies carried out in this context, a social impact analysis was performed to measure the social benefits of such studies and to identify the profile of the dairy farming in Turkey. Within the scope of this analysis, questionnaires for producers, training monitoring activities, ethnographic observations and one-on-one interviews were conducted.

Project Outputs and Effects on Business Results

• Based on the principle of "contribution to the region", it is emphasized that Pınar attaches importance to the development of the region not only in terms of financial investment, but also in social terms.
• The trainings provided within the scope of the project were organized in the regions where the producers are located, giving them the message that the project stands by them and making them feel valued.
• The project contributed to the sustainability of nature and the environment by aiming to produce more efficiently with less resource consumption.
• The project was realized within the framework of “Public-University-Industry” Cooperation and the cooperation between institutions was strengthened.
• “Practical Information Brochure for Dairy Farms”, one of the written materials prepared within the scope of the project, has been prepared as a guide booklet that guides producers on animal health, feeding and hygienic milking practices.  It was aimed to allow the producers to access the information whenever they need, and long-lasting effect of the information was ensured.

Awards and Achievements

• The project was considered as an Inclusive Business Model among the company projects that could be supported in the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Business Call to Action (BCtA) program. The cooperation carried out within this scope is important to spread the project in the international arena, reach a wider group of people, measure the social impact and pioneer a first in the sector.
• The project has become a role model by being published in the “Sustainable Agriculture Principles - Best Practice Guide” by the Sustainable Development Association in 2018.
• The project was awarded the Bronze Award at the Stevie Awards within the scope of the 2014 European Corporate Social Responsibility Program of the Year at the International Business Awards. The project “The Future of Our Milk Is in Safe Hands” was among the top 3 projects in the Yaşar Group 2016 Sustainability Contest and was awarded the Sustainability Award.
  
• The project became a role model by being among the good practice examples in the "Sustainable Agriculture Principles - Good Practice Guide" published by the Sustainable Development Association in 2018.
• "The Future of Our Milk is in Safe Hands" project was awarded in the category of " Carrying Agriculture to the Future" at the Future of Agriculture-Forestry Summit held in Izmir on October 15, 2020 with the theme of "New 10 Years of Agriculture" in order to contribute to the roadmap of Turkish agriculture. The award was presented by the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Mr. Bekir Pakdemirli.
• The project was a Finalist in the Partnership for Sustainability Award competition held by the Global Compact Ukraine Network in 2020.At the "Women-Friendly Brands Special Awards" ceremony, organized for the first time in 2021 by the Women-Friendly Brands Platform, the project, which stands out with its value-creating practices on women and gender equality, received an award.

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