Milk Systems of Smaller African Cities: Two Examples from Tanzania

Abstract

This paper describes the milk systems supplying Mwanza and Shinyanga in northern Tanzania. Two primary sources of fresh liquid milk: grade dairy cattle kept in the urban areas and indigenous cattle kept in hinterland areas, are identified, and their respective contributions to daily milk supply are quantified. These sources appear to serve a market segmented by concerns over price, quality and trust. It is hypothesized that the dramatic increase in urban dairy cattle over the last decade has resulted in increased milk availability and lower consumer prices. Further developments within the urban dairy sector will potentially have significant impacts on hinterland producers and urban consumers. The eventual success of the government's economic structural adjustment programme will be an important factor in shaping the future size of the dairy sector and the interplay of urban and hinterland production.