An experience that I will remember forever.

Nenih is a dairy farmer from West Java, Indonesia who takes part in our Dairy Development Programme (DDP). Since joining the program in 2014 her knowledge and skills about dairy farming have rapidly increased. In 2019 she even got the opportunity to visit the Netherlands as part of our Farmer2Farmer missions.

“I have been involved in dairy farming since the year 2000 when at the age of 17 I started working in dairy farms. Since then it has always been my dream to own a farm. In 2008 my dream became a reality as I bought a small piece of land with the intention to build a cow shed with a capacity of 4 cows. In 2011 I received my first cow as a subsidiary from the Indonesian government. I currently own 4 cows and 4 calves that provide a stable income for my husband, two sons and myself.”

Much of my knowledge on how to run a dairy farm I have received solely from the DDP programme.

“I attended my first DDP training in 2014. Much of my knowledge on how to run a dairy farm I have received solely from the DDP programme. It is because of the DDP that I know how to feed my cows in the right ways, how to prevent them from getting sicknesses, such as mastitis, and how to guarantee the quality of my milk. In 2018 my family and I moved to a new house and I had to rebuild my cow shed. The new cow shed was built in accordance to the knowledge I received from the Farmer2Farmer missions held by Dutch farmers in Indonesia. I could see the change in my cows as they were more comfortable and produced milk of a higher quality. Besides, I became more efficient in the new stables. Thanks to the changes I implemented in my stables I was recognised and given the opportunity to visit Adinda Roerink, a Dutch farmer in the Netherlands in the summer of 2019. An experience that I will remember forever.”

“Adinda, the member dairy farmer of FrieslandCampina who was my host in the Netherlands, and I have something very important in common. We both are hardworking and love our cows, so I had an immediate connection with her and wanted to memorise as much as I could from what I saw on her farm. For example, Adinda’s farm has complete records for absolutely everything, the cows live in great conditions and the milking hygiene is of an exceptional level. Adinda also taught me a lot on how to trim the hoofs of my cows, make silage, and better utilize manure.”

“Back home in Indonesia I try to share everything I’ve learned from the DDP within my community. I often hold trainings for my neighbours and I always invite their wives as well. The challenge for women in Indonesia is that they are often not allowed to become dairy farmers. Their husbands are scared that the work requires a lot of physical strength, but I want to show them that it can be done. During the trainings I teach them among other things how to keep their records in good order, how to evaluate the profit of their business and how to properly take care of their cows and calves. I hope that the DDP programme will continue to provide me with the right knowledge and skills in the future which I can use to secure the income of my family and to inspire more farmers around me to become better at what they do.”