Bº Alentejo: Covid-19, begins to cause difficulties to farms of dairy sheep.
Breeders of sheep milk begin to have excess milk. A decrease production, but in Évora area already play out milk. Serra da Estrela the situation is dramatic.
It's a vicious circle: there is a lower demand for cheese and cakes, less trade orders, producers produce less cheese and curd and breeders of sheep milk begin to have excess milk.
Not being from the moment such a dramatic situation like the one we live in Serra da Estrela, the creators of dairy sheep district of Beja begin to have difficulty flow of milk due to the reduction of orders from producers of cheese and curd.
The access restrictions on large and small shopping centers, the closed pastries, originated situations caused by the pandemic crisis of the new coronavirus, It reflects the principle of the food chain.
LuÃs Caetano, 52 year old, It has two farms one Valley Goshawk, Mértola and another in Gorda, county Beja, It has an effective 500 sheep milk, grazing in semi-extensive.
"It produced 450 a 500 liters / day, and at this time has reduced in 20%. I have two clients that I provide milk, one in Serpa and another in Mombeja. Until the end of month things will be no major problems ", apprehensive says creator.
The join the parcel breaks cheese and curd surfaces and confectioners, "Hawkers, can not circulate and the sale of products fell much ", adding that orders to producers of cheese and curd is a day and this is reflected immediately in the supply of milk ", ends.
The Lidador News (LN) found that in Evora area, there are already farmers to throw away milk for failing to drain the same.
Can not drain due to decreased sales of Serra da Estrela cheese. Call for support for the state because they have no other income.
Pastors are living with the rope around his neck. The sheep's cheese sales reduced dramatically, forcing the medium and small dairies (the vast majority of the country) reduce the production of cheese and, thereby, affecting hundreds of pastors that make the sale of milk to sole source of income.
In the area of ​​Serra da Estrela, PDO production of cheese (Protected Designation of Origin) It is practically suspended. Some pastors are launching the street milk daily milkings. This is the case of Ana Isabel Silva, Oliveira do Hospital, yesterday dumped near 500 liters of milk which was stored in two tanks appropriate. “Our supplier has suspended production and what we do with milk? Keep it up when? The containers are filled in two days”, He explains that this pastor with her husband manages a herd of 150 sheep.
Teixeira Correia
(journalist)
