The Faroe Islands Dairy Centre

A central dairy was established for all the Faroe Islands in order to supply all 45,000 inhabitants with fresh milk and to ensure dairy produce sales on the Faroese market. In addition,the company, which is a co-operative, safeguards the interests of the dairy producers, gives advice on the handling of milk, so that the dairy is able at all times to offer customers milk of the highest quality. In the view of the MBM, this goal has been achieved through the company's constant emphasis on providing both producers and customers with good service.

Besides milk for direct consumption, the dairy produces a natural range of cream and soured products and conducts studies, both to improve quality and to develop new products, e.g. cream cheese and fruit drinks.

The rapid increase in production and range of products has made it necessary to keep pace in the adaptation of the production plant. MBM has now attained an optimal utilization of its premises and machinery, and expansion is currently beingplanned.

Other activities
MBM does not limit its activities to the production of dairy products. In 1987 it took over a company which dealt in fodder and artificial fertilizers. MBM-Fodder is now performing well as a purchase and sales department of L/F MBM, supplying farmers with cheap fodder and high-quality fertilizers.

Another department of MBM supplies farmers with various types of agricultural machinery and implements and runs a repair shop for lorries, tractors and farming machinery. A substantial part of the department's activity consists of providing dairy producers with guidance and servicing their refrigeration and processing equipment, and it runs specially-equipped service vehicles for thispurpose.

The MBM model
Agricultural organizations in the Faroe Islands have decided to work closely together, and have set out to modernize and streamline their structure. A common administration is to be set up to attend to overall control and so ensure that the shared resources and facilities can be utilized as effectively as possible.

The new organization is located at the Forsøgsstationen research station in Kollafjørd, which is to become the centre of Faroese agriculture. In addition to the agricultural station, the station also houses the state veterinary service. MBM is a project that has proved that agriculture can be made profitable through co-operation and co-ordination. Before the establishment of MBM, the Faroes were not self-sufficient in milk, but in only a few years, production was raised and the entire market was taken over.

The Faroes are not self-sufficient in meat and other agricultural products. They produce some of their own requirements in mutton and beef. There are approximately 70,000 sheep on the Islands. They graze freely all year long, and are only given a little additional fodder during the worst winters.

Thus, the aim is to develop agriculture to the point where the Faroe Islands will be self-sufficient in as many areas as possible.

The latest goal is to establish an abattoir for beef and mutton production. This project will be achieved on the basis of the MBM model.