FARMERS STRUGGLE TO SUPPLY MILK AMID GAZA CRISIS
▶ Essential resources become increasingly scarce for millions of Palestinians in the besieged enclave
Farmers are facing challenges in providing fresh milk to starving Palestinians in Gaza because of a lack of food for their cows, and livestock are being killed by Israeli air strikes.
Fresh milk has become a rare commodity for many of the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza after about four months of war that has displaced farmers and disrupted the flow of food aid to the enclave.
“People come to ask for milk for their children, but I can’t give them any because the cows don’t produce enough,” said Rafiq Al Dahdouh, a Gaza farmer who lost most of his animals to Israeli shelling.
Before the outbreak of the war, Mr Al Dahdouh owned 50 cows, which he reared on a farm in the east of Gaza and used to produce and sell milk.
Israel’s bombardment and subsequent ground invasion destroyed his livelihood and forced him to flee.
Thirty-five of his cows were killed by Israeli shelling, he told The National, before he fled south with the remaining 15.
“Some animals [collapsed from hunger and rotted] where they fell. Those that miraculously survived then endured shelling by tanks,” he said.
Like many Gazans displaced by the war, Mr Al Dahdouh is now staying in Rafah, close
to the Egyptian border. His remaining herd has been severely affected by a shortage of animal feed, and he has been compelled to give the animals corn stover or hay, the only available sources of food.
“A cow needs to eat well to produce milk,” he said.
The situation is even more dire in Gaza city, in the north of the enclave.
Jaber Abu Ajwa is one of the few dairy farmers able to provide fresh milk to the remaining residents of the devastated city.
He used to own a herd of about 240 cows on a farm close to the border with Israel. He was forced to leave about 30 of them behind when the war started, as they were pregnant and difficult to move. Since then, 80 more cows have died from starvation, while Mr Abu Ajwa decided to slaughter another 50 to sell their meat amid dwindling food supplies.
Mr Abu Ajwa currently lives with his remaining cows at Al Yarmouk Stadium in Gaza city, yet he faces challenges in ensuring their survival and well-being.
“I faced difficulties in feeding the cows, so I started to
People come to ask for milk for their children, but I can’t give them any because the cows don’t produce enough RAFIQ AL DAHDOUH Gaza farmer
feed them hay instead of animal feed. Even if I find food for them, the prices are so high,” he told The National.
The cost of a hay sack was 10 shekels ($2.75) before the war, but it has now increased to 70 shekels ($19.25). Likewise, a sack of animal feed, once priced at 100 shekels, has surged to about 300 shekels, assuming one can be found for purchase.
Mr Abu Ajwa milks his cows twice a day, at 5.30am and 3pm. Some cows used to produce about 40 litres for him, but now they average six litres. He sells a litre for about six shekels.
Like other Palestinians, he has also been forced to use some of the grain set aside for livestock to bake bread to eat.
Despite his diminishing resources, there is a significant demand for his milk as people lack alternatives. Each day, people from various parts of Gaza arrive early in the morning to buy milk from him, often enduring hours of waiting in queues.
Zahra Auda travelled from Jabilia refugee camp to buy milk. “I came at 3pm to get a chance to buy milk for my son,” Ms Auda told The National.
Her son, Asad, has a leg wound and fracture sustained during Israeli shelling.
“I buy the milk to help my son heal his fracture,” she added.
In Rafah, Mr Al Dahdouh appealed for more animal feed to help ease the situation. “Why doesn’t Israel send feed to Gaza for cattle, chickens, sheep and other animals?” he asked. “The animals are innocent in this war. They are just animals.”