Ilimo Dairy Maize Outgrower Program sees Local Community Pilot Program for First Time

By Lillian Keneqa – EMTV News, Port Moresby

This year 2019 will see over 500 farmers in the Central Province sign on to Ilimo Dairy’s Maize Out-grower program. As part of an initiative by member for Kairuku, Peter Isoaimo, the Dasiama Community are piloting this program.

Ilimo Dairy has been working closely with partners at the Central Province Administration to provide seeds and advice to local farmers who are currently engaged in the pilot program.

As the herd grows to meet increasing local demand, the need to source feed locally grows, because of this, Ilimo Dairy has moved to sourcing feed for the herd locally in which the farmers in Central Province now have a vital role to play.

The maize is an important component of feed for the farm’s dairy cows that produce the much loved Ilimo Dairy products.

1 hectare of land at the Dasiama community within the Kairuku – Hiri District was ploughed, cultivated and then divided into 10-meter vertical blocks for maize planting which happened on the  23^rd  December last year.

As you can see, the sprouting maize is now about 23 days old.

It takes approximately 100 to 120 days until the maize is ready for harvest.

The Kairuku – Hiri District is poised to be the first district in Central Province to supplement rural household incomes with cash from the Ilimo Dairy smallholder maize out-grower program.  

This out-grower program is designed to give rural households access to cash-cropping opportunities.