A few days ago I participated in Mercoláctea in Uruguay, the largest dairy fair meeting, where a variety of proposals for the Uruguayan and regional dairy complex were presented.

“Uruguayan dairy production has shown a favorable evolution in recent years, supported by the adoption of technologies and management adjustments by the producer, international demand and the security provided by Uruguay for medium and long-term investments”, said the organizers of the expo.

But it was not just a static exhibition: Mercoláctea took us to the very heart of the Uruguayan dairy industry.

Field tours included the Antognazza family’s El Chivo dairy farm and herd in San José, visits to Los Robles and Las Palmas dairy farms; the experimental unit of INIA La Estanzuela, Don Carlos dairy farm of the Félix family and El Escondido dairy farm of the Blum family; the rebreeding farm of the Florida Milk Producers Society, as well as El Caballito dairy farm of the Perez family.

The grand finale was the visit to the mega dairy farm and industries Estancias del Lago, in Durazno, a sustainable agro-industrial complex for the production of powdered milk, owned by the Argentine businessman Alejandro Bulgheroni.

Located on more than 20,000 hectares in the center of Uruguay, fertirrigation agriculture and intensive cattle raising are integrated with the most modern industry, and with a stall system, it is the largest individual milk producer in the country.

With a crowd that filled 2 buses, including journalists, farmers and industrialists from Ecuador, Colombia, Paraguay and Spain… we arrived at Estancias del Lago after a journey through a thick fog.

Estancias del Lago produces, at full capacity, 21,000 tons of powdered milk per year, under the Magnalat brand, and exclusively for export, in continuous production and processing with 3 work shifts per day, ensuring the preservation, stability and quality of the final product, which also offers 100% traceability of its production.

13,000 milking cows, 150 meters from the processing plant, generate 500,000 liters per day, and the surplus production is sent to other companies in the sector.

The cooled milk passes from the dairy to the plant through 150 meters of piping, and is industrialized within 4 to 8 hours of milking. This “milk pipeline” system avoids burning fossil fuels in the transportation of the raw material.

Powdered milk is produced by spray-drying fresh, pasteurized and evaporated cow’s milk.

The plant manufactures different types of powdered whole, skim, instant, UHT, and chocolate milk powder in 25 kg packages.

With full agricultural and livestock integration, the company grows and processes the feed for its cows, ensuring the conditions for obtaining the best quality milk.

Its commitment to the environment is strong, and is embodied in:

230 tons per day of solid biofertilizers and 1,300 m3 per day of fertigation.
More than 300,000 tons of fodder and grains per year.
Grain storage plant for 27,000 tons per year of forage and grains.
2,300 tons per year of biofuels for thermal energy generation.
Three water reservoirs of more than 7 million m3.
This company was designed to meet the needs of the most demanding consumers in this aspect, as well as the responsibility that this type of agro-industrial undertaking demands.

Estancias del Lago is committed to sustainability. They monitor and manage resources and waste, thus allowing for their responsible use and renewal.

They use the most advanced practices and technologies such as fertigation, animal welfare, milking systems, using renewable energies and complying with the highest national and international standards in each area.

It has energy efficiency certifications for the steam generation system from its boiler, as well as for the generation of biogas from 8 biodigesters.

This biogas is transferred to the milk powder plant through a gas pipeline, replacing fuel oil and LPG in its steam generation boiler and drying oven.

Estancias del Lago has received numerous awards for the quality of its work: BROU’s 5th largest exporter client award, Energy Efficiency Certificate, Green Exporter Award, and National Environmental Award.

The irrigation of crops with green water supports the triple R concept: reuse, recycle, reuse.

The use of biodigested solids as soil improvers and in the generation of comfortable bedding for the herd are elements that contribute to the environmental care that the company carries out on a daily basis.

Estancias del Lago fully applies the concept of Circular Economy: “proposes a paradigm shift, where the linear economy of extraction, consumption and discarding is transformed into a model aimed at reducing environmental impacts, to promote the global economic development of optimizing, recirculating, dematerializing and exchanging materials, inputs and resources used in production, contributing to reduce the environmental impact”.

Perhaps the greatest thing about my work, is that there is always something more great to discover. There is always a new wonder waiting for me on the next trip.

Dairy is good for you, and dairy farming is an incredible world worth knowing.

See you next time!