The construction of the plant lasted 2.5 years with the financial support of the Canadian cooperative organization SOCODEVI
Today, July 18, the ceremonial opening of the first cooperative milk processing plant in Ukraine took place. It was built in the Zolochiv district as part of the project “Development of dairy business in Ukraine”, which is financed by the Canadian government.
The capacity of the plant will be 25 tons of milk per shift.
“I thank our Canadian partners not only for the implementation of this project, but also for their constant support and the loud voice of Ukraine in the international arena. Our diaspora in Canada does not forget its roots and tries to help us in this difficult time. Thanks to support not only in words, but also in deeds, we will be able to defeat the enemy. This project helped create new jobs in the community, which will give faith in the future not only to local residents, but also to those who found refuge here because of the war. Thank you to everyone who participated in the implementation of this extremely important project! We thank the dairy farms that continue to work, join cooperatives and develop the dairy industry of our state. Let this project become an example and motivation for the creation of new farms and unity around cooperatives. Prosperity to the enterprise!” – stressed the head of Lviv OVA Maksym Kozytskyi.
The total amount of investments in the plant is 95 million hryvnias, of which 90 million are the funds of the Canadian cooperative organization SOCODEVI, another 5 million are financial support from Ukrainian cooperatives.
“Our organization is engaged in the development of the cooperative movement, and we chose to invest in Ukraine. When full-scale war broke out, there was, of course, a great deal of risk and doubt on the part of the Canadians. Some private investors refused to finance the project, besides, the prices of all construction materials also increased, we took a risk. But the Canadian Government came to the rescue, from which we received an additional resource to complete the construction,” said Francois Dion, director of SOCODEVI’s international programs.
“We want to show that this cooperative plant provides an opportunity to obtain additional value to the products that are already produced by cooperatives. Also – to establish a direct connection between the consumer and the producer. This plant will receive milk only from producers operating in the territory of Lviv region. Anyone who buys our products will be able to see the conditions under which milk is produced. We emphasize the quality of products. The work of the producers will be rewarded by the fact that they work for themselves, because they are all co-owners of the plant. Canadians are admired by Ukrainians, and everyone asked me how you manage to build a factory during the war. It was a very big challenge for both managers and workers when it was cold and there were problems with the electricity supply. But as you can see, even in spite of everything, we managed to complete the project,” emphasized SOCODEVI specialist Kamil Cote.
The owner of the newly built plant in Zolochiv region is the cooperative association “Rivnopravnist”, which includes 4 cooperatives, the members of which are more than 100 dairy farms of Lviv region, which keep from 5 to 50 cows.
“You completed this project under extremely difficult conditions caused by Russia’s brutal aggression, including disruption of energy supply due to missile strikes. We saw it with our own eyes. But you didn’t give up. I am in awe of your resilience and perseverance. Canada supports this project because we believe that small and medium-sized farms play a critical role in strengthening food security and the prosperity of rural communities and regions. I am convinced that this plant is an example of how to support Ukrainians and Ukraine,” said Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Canada to Ukraine Larisa Galadza.
The plant will produce a wide range of dairy products. It is about milk, fermented milk products, soft cheeses, butter and yogurts. After setting up production, the goods will be sold in supermarkets.
The enterprise will provide jobs for 25 workers, but later they plan to employ the same number of specialists.
According to the Department of Agro-Industrial Development of Lviv Oblast, 94 agricultural enterprises in the region are engaged in dairy farming. Of them, about 30 farms with a herd of 100 to 500 cows provide 70% of milk production in agricultural enterprises.