# Assessing sustainability and resilience of three dairy value chaines in Southern Mediterrenean countries

Francesco Accatino, Youssef Aboussaleh, Moustafa Fadel, Halil İbrahim Kiliç, Margherita De Masi, Barbara Merlo, Sukru Orkan, Nursen Ozturk, Arzu Peker, Yari Vecchio, et al.

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► To cite this version:

Francesco Accatino, Youssef Aboussaleh, Moustafa Fadel, Halil İbrahim Kiliç, Margherita De Masi, et al.. Assessing sustainability and resilience of three dairy value chaines in Southern Mediterrenean countries. 76th EAAP Annual Meeting, EAAP - European Federation of Animal Science, Sep 2025, Innsbruck, Austria. 38 p. hal-05263238

HAL Id: hal-05263238

https://hal.science/hal-05263238v1

Submitted on 16 Sep 2025

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# Assessing sustainability and resilience of three dairy value chaines in Southern Mediterranean countries

F. Accatino, Y. Aboussaleh, M. Fadel, H. Kilic, M. Masi, B. Merlo, Ş Orkan, N. Ozturk, A. Peker, Y. Vecchio, A. Costa

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Towards a more sustainable and resilient Mediterranean milk supply chain

"SUPREM-MILK: a project towards a more sustainable and resilient dairy farming in the Southern Mediterranean countries" is part of the PRIMA Programme supported by the European Union.

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This project is part of the
Mediterranean programme supported
by the european union

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SUPREM·milk

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PRIMA
PARTNERSHIP FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
IN THE MEDITERRANEAN AREA

In Southern Mediterranean countries dairy products are vital for nutrition and rural livelihoods (mostly smallholders)

Rising demands, low efficiency, climate change, unbalanced income distribution threaten sustainability and equity.

SUPREM-MILK supports farmers with tools and knowledge transfer for sustainable and resilient production

Task: HOLISTIC SUSTAINABILITY ASSESSMENT OF DAIRY VALUE CHAINS IN THREE SOUTHERN MEDITERRENEAN COUNTRIES
## Case study regions

Mostly small farms (< 50 heads)

### Morocco

RSK region, including Rabat, Salé, Kénitra. Milk production focused in Kénitra region. 15% of Morocco milk production.

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## Case study regions

## Mostly small farms (< 50 heads)

### Morocco

RSK region, including Rabat, Salé, Kénitra. Milk production focused in Kénitra region. 15% of Morocco milk production.

<figure><img src="image_10.png" /></figure>

### Egypt

Regions of Damietta, Cairo, Beny Suef. Self-sufficient, farmers do not export, poor access to infrastructure
## Case study regions

## Mostly small farms (< 50 heads)

### Morocco

RSK region, including Rabat, Salé, Kénitra. Milk production focused in Kénitra region. 15% of Morocco milk production.

### Egypt

Regions of Damietta, Cairo, Beny Suef. Self-sufficient, farmers do not export, poor access to infrastructure

### Türkiye

Marmara region, dependent on milk imports from the Aegian region. Non-agricultural oriented but biggest GDP contributor of the country

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# Sustainability assessment

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## QUANTITATIVE

Definition of indicators

Indicator 1

3.89

Indicator 2

10

Indicator n

0.9
# Sustainability assessment

<figure><img src="image_13.png" /></figure>

## QUANTITATIVE

Definition of indicators

Indicator 1 3.89

Indicator 2 10

Indicator n 0.9

## QUALITATIVE

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# Sustainability assessment

## QUANTITATIVE

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Definition of indicators

Indicator 1 3.89

Indicator 2 10

Indicator n 0.9

## QUALITATIVE

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# Sustainability assessment

* Overview of the main challenges + discussing possible strategies

* All aspects included (environment, economics, social, institutional), and all value chain steps

* Subjectivity as part of the process

* Stakeholder engagement

* Collective work

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**QUALITATIVE**
Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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# Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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Preliminary interviews
with local experts

09/24

online
## Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

<figure><img src="image_23.png" /></figure>
## Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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## Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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Existence of formal and informal value chain

FORMAL

Milk goes from farmers to milk collector centers and then to the processing and eventually to the retailer. All transactions are regulated, traceable, and quality is controlled

INFORMAL
# Existence of formal and informal value chain

## FORMAL

Milk goes from farmers to milk collector centers and then to the processing and eventually to the retailer. All transactions are regulated, traceable, and quality is controlled

## INFORMAL

Informal transaction especially from the farmers to the transporters. Quality is not always checked, price not always convenient to the farmers.
# Existence of formal and informal value chain

## FORMAL

Milk goes from farmers to milk collector centers and then to the processing and eventually to the retailer. All transactions are **regulated, traceable, and quality is controlled**

## INFORMAL

**Informal transaction** especially from the farmers to the transporters. **Quality is not always checked, price not always convenient** to the farmers.

**No access to formal markets**

It is more effective to sell to informal markets in many cases (**immediate liquidity**)

Milk collector centers have reached their maximum capacity
<figure><img src="image_26.png" /><figcaption>Scheme of a dairy value chain</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_27.png" /><figcaption>Scheme of a dairy value chain</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_28.png" /><figcaption>Scheme of a dairy value chain</figcaption></figure>
Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

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# Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

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MOROCCO

TÜRKİYE

EGYPT

DROUGHTS AND CHANGES IN SEASONALITY

NON-SELF-SUFFICIENCY AND SENSITIVITY TO CURRENCY FLUCTUATION

FEED ITEM FRAGMENTATION
Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

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# Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

## Milk collection

### MOROCCO

MILK COLLECTOR CENTERS CAN BE VERY FAR

### TÜRKİYE

ALMOST COMPLETE ABSENCE OF MILK COLLECTOR CENTERS

### EGYPT
Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

<figure><img src="image_32.png" /></figure>
# Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

## Milk consumption

MOROCCO

TÜRKİYE

EGYPT

PERCEPTION THAT “FRESH” MILK (NOT PROCESSED) IS HEALTHIER

SMALL SHOPS
SOMETIMES LACK
ELECTRICITY
Putting together elementary challenges

Challenge: small farmers are weak in the value chain

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## Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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Roundtable with international experts and stakeholders

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Challenge: uncertain feed availability

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Low hygiene and quality

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Challenge: small farmers are weak in the value chain

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Other challenges

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Key insights from the roundtable

Importance of considering the
specificity of the local contexts

Key role of NGO for implementing
projects locally

Importance of the in-depth knowledge
of the social dynamics
Key insights from the roundtable

Importance of considering the
specificity of the local contexts

Key role of NGO for implementing
projects locally

Importance of the in-depth knowledge
of the social dynamics

Difficulty to work with animal welfare
topics

Many consumers and producers live in
poverty and perceive this as luxury
Key insights from the roundtable

Importance of considering the
specificity of the local contexts

Key role of NGO for implementing
projects locally

Importance of the in-depth knowledge
of the social dynamics

Difficulty to work with animal welfare
topics

Many consumers and producers live in
poverty and perceive this as luxury

Addition of chemicals in milk by some
transporters for passing the tests

Rejection and waste of huge quantities
of milk with finer tests
## Workflow: narrowing down the analysis

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# Organisation of the local focus groups

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To invite: people from different steps of the dairy value chain

Pre-select 3 to 5 challenges for each step of the value chain

Invite people to discuss these challenges, add more, speak more in depth
## (Some) insights from the focus group in Türkiye

Focus group (12 participants) in Karacabey, Türkiye, organized by Dr. Arzu Peker, Ankara University.

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Students who graduated from vet faculty do not have enough command of the field

The producer chooses the dairy breed incorrectly and is unconscious about it

Increases costs due to diseases

Lack of communication along the steps of dairy production
# Examples of challenges (generic and specific)

<figure><img src="image_44.png" /></figure>

## TÜRKİYE

### DROUGHTS AND CHANGES IN SEASONALITY

* NON-SELF-SUFFICIENCY AND SENSITIVITY TO CURRENCY FLUCTUATION

* Absence of feed **quality standardization** (the unit is the bale but the composition might not be constant)

* Feed price only depending on **quantity** and not quality

* Inefficient feed transportation infrastructure
# Take-home message

**Ongoing process → still need to make a structured picture**

Challenges occur on many levels, **from farm to system**

**Communication is key →** importance of organizing focus groups and events where people can speak

Many challenges and solutions are **context dependent**, they require specific and targeted approaches
Thanks for your attention!

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SUPR EM·milk

Website

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francesco.accatino@inrae.fr