On August 21, Minsk Region / Alina Grishkevich - BELTA/. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko has set the task to continue the creation of modern dairy farms in the country. He said this today, summing up the results of his visit to the Dzerzhinsky and Zhdanovichi agro-combines during a working trip to the Minsk Region, BELTA correspondent reports. The Head of State emphasized: "My requirements remain the same. Today, talking with the managers and specialists of advanced farms, I am once again convinced: we are on the right track and are not making any technological mistakes. As for my requirement to modernize old dairy farms (where cows are milked into buckets or via milk pipelines), the creation of dairy complexes must be continued in strict accordance with technology." During the discussion of this topic, there were no contradictions or disputes among specialists and regional leaders regarding feeding, watering, milking, and manure removal on new farms. "But some people want to simplify my requirements and add a link that costs money, leaving dairy farms with milking into milk pipelines. But this is not the quality of milk we need, a milking parlor is required. We have seen how to modernize farms," the Head of State noted. "I hope that today's event, as a result of which we heard and understood each other, will put an end to disputes about what dairy complexes should be like in the future. What we are doing is not an end in itself, it is hard work," the President believes. In his opinion, this work cannot be postponed. "He who runs faster wins. And time is pressing us, because when we work within the framework of the WTO, which Russia is already joining, we will have to compete with leading world companies. To survive and be competitive in this struggle, we need to have good quality milk," Alexander Lukashenko noted. As a positive example of how to work and modernize the livestock industry, Alexander Lukashenko cited the head of the Zhdanovichi agro-combine, Grigory Chuyko, who uses modern technologies and will use robots on new complexes: "This person places high demands on working conditions."The President continued: "I demanded and demand from you – we must introduce one dairy farm complex in each farm, by modernizing an old farm or building a new one." Dairy farm complexes can be of three types – approximately for 600, 800, or 1000 head. As for milk pipelines, they will, of course, remain, and for more than one year. But already this year, we need to move away from milking into buckets. Alexander Lukashenko demanded that old farms be modernized first and foremost. He emphasized that the main goal of the current meeting with the heads of regions and their deputies responsible for agricultural issues is to reach a common opinion. "And we have reached a common opinion – everyone knows what to do," the Head of State added. At the same time, there are problems in the Vitebsk and Gomel regions. "I hope that there are no such problems in the Grodno, Mogilev, and Brest regions. The Minsk region has promised to resolve these problems. It will be a real feat for the leadership of the Minsk region if they do as agreed," the Head of State said. "Vice-Premier Mikhail Rusy, together with the Prime Minister, must sort it out and see what else needs to be done to complete the task in these regions." According to the President, the task must be completed, then we can be confident in the modernization of dairy farms into complexes throughout the country. Alexander Lukashenko is convinced that it is necessary to follow this path and modernize livestock farming at a rapid pace. "We have to do today what is needed not for tomorrow, but for the day after tomorrow. We must live for the day after tomorrow. And we have everything for this – building materials, equipment, the necessary human resources. We will be worth nothing if we do not complete this task," he emphasized. -0-

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