| In the Netherlands, the dairy production chain faces a number of changes including decreasing comsumption of dairy products, and falling price of raw cows' milk. The participants of the dairy industry in the Netherlands, therefore, strive to exploit the opportunities residing in alteration of characteristics of milk as a raw material for specific purposes. By amending the composition, milk having better manufacturing properties or specialized health- promoting benefits can be obtained. Improvements in both directions can be beneficial not only for the Dutch but also for other dairy industries given the importance of cheese manufacturing and the increasing attention for human health worldwide. Subsequently, the present study considers methods altering the characteristics of raw cows' milk prior to the processing stage. Although the literature gives many examples on changing milk characteristics by the considered methods, the implementation of them raises a number of crucial questions. What are the economic consequences (effects on revenues, costs and chain organization) for a dairy production chain to implement techniques to alter milk characteristics before the processing stage? New business actions, in general, are typically risky and might demand substantial capital investment and lead to additional costs; however, the literature on economic viability of the considered methods is limited. Therefore, the overall objective of this study is to analyze the economics of implementation of different scenarios to change the milk in the pre-processing phase of the Dutch dairy production chain. The main goal is to develop the most profitable scenario for the production of designer milk in the Netherlands and determine its role for the competitive position of the Dutch dairy production chain. |
