With the exception of South Africa, the capacity of the wider African dairy industry to face demand for milk and dairy products remains constrained.
Most of the milk producers in the rest of Africa market remain largely small-scale, with milk processors having to capacitate these farmers to scale up.
Automation and integration of AI into the African dairy industry will help boost capacity and scale. The larger dairy processors in Africa such as Nestle and Arla in Nigeria have already embraced AI.
Louis van Ravesteyn, the executive head of agribusiness for Standard Bank, which is involved in funding dairy farmers and processors, told us that AI is helping the African dairy industry to realize efficiencies and with monitoring of health of cows.
“AI is assisting with supply chain efficiencies while various AI applications help identify animals and monitor health status through the heat signature of the animals,” said Ravasteyn.
He explained that at the large-scale producer’s level in Africa, “there is a high adoption level of technology in dairy to manage” herds.
“This software-driven system does automated heat-spotting for breeding, identifying and separating sick animals, used in culling decisions based on individual animal production,” he said. “The benefit is it simplifies and improves the management of the animals.”
Arla, Nestlé embrace ‘game-changing’ tech
Arla Foods is one such company that is taping into AI for its dairy operations in Nigeria.
At the Arla farm, the company’s cows “wear beautiful necklaces” that “serve a crucial purpose” as they are integrated with “small computers that monitor the cows’ movements” and health.
“This technology allows us to detect heat in cows, helping us determine if they should be inseminated or not,” explained Peder Pedersen, managing director for Arla Global Dairy.
“But the capabilities of this system extend far beyond that. In fact, it can be considered a comprehensive health monitoring system, essential for maintaining the health, fertility, and productivity of our cows and heifers.”
Nestlé, which processes milk into dairy products across African markets, is also embracing AI under the parent company’s global Responsible AI framework.
“In Africa, AI is helping us optimize logistics, improve feed and breeding programs, and enhance traceability in the dairy sector.”
Nestlé spokesperson
“It’s a game-changer for efficiency and sustainability, and we’re seeing real benefits in how we manage our operations and support farmers,” said a spokesperson for the company.
Ravasteyn also stated that AI is being utilised across the African dairy value chain in areas ranging from milk collection logistics to distribution of final products. Through AI integration and data analysis, dairy industry players in Africa are “seeking out the lowest cost” solutions.
At the milk processing end, AI algorithms integrated within manufacturing processes monitor equipment downtime in real time and report to operators for speedy resolution.
Finally, AI applications are helping dairy processors with analytics tools for decision-making.
