Social Enterprise, A Step In The HIC SUM Project
The “HIC SUM” project at Misericordia di Adrano: milk processing as a social enterprise in Madagascar
The project “HIC SUM” provides in the path of our Sister Yolande, who is currently at the Fraternity of Misericordia of Adrano in the province of Catania, a plan of mentoring and coaching with respect to the technical and organizational dynamics to establish a new “Misericordia” in her country of origin: Madagascar.
At the same time, he lays the groundwork for the creation of a “Social Enterprise” that can provide over time, the sustenance necessary to maintain the project even after the end of the spazio + spadoni funding peiodo.
What Social Enterprise to create?
After a long and careful analysis of needs and available resources, the right path to take was identified: the establishment of a small herd and dairy farm.
Sister Yolande, therefore, undertook her training under the guidance of two volunteers from Misericordia di Adrano, owners of a family-owned farm and dairy.
Several factors contributed in this choice, one of which was the high cost of cheese in Madagascar. Independent production could not only help the sisters of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart of Ragusa in providing an essential food for the growth of the children under their care and tutelage, but it could also help create a source of economic livelihood for their homes there in Madagascar.
Breeding type and management
The sisters of the Congregation of the Sacred Heart in Ragusa already run small farms in their homes in Madagascar, and this was a factor in their decision to set up a dairy as a “Social Enterprise.”
Knowing, even if only in part, the management process would have simplified their future learning work. But there was one problem: the small amount of milk produced. This did not allow them to produce any kind of cheese, which explains why they had never taken this path until now.
Initially we believed that this problem depended on the weather conditions and the type of forage. After careful evaluation, however, we discovered that it actually depended on the breed type of the cow, which was unsuitable for milk production. Having identified the most suitable breed, our Sister Yolande immediately began her training.
Field training in three stages
We thought it would be most appropriate to divide the training into three phases, so that they could learn the entire production process, from breeding to milking, harvesting to processing the milk into dairy products.
For the first phase, the volunteer tutors from Misericordia of Adrano showed their herd, how they fed their animals and how they managed them to keep them healthy and strong. Already familiar with this part, they immediately moved on to phase two of the training: milking.
The tutors explained when is the right time to proceed, how to place their hands and how to collect the milk produced. These days we arrived at phase three of our training:how to run a dairy and what machinery and techniques are needed to produce the various dairy products, such as cheese, caciocavallo or ricotta.
How is milk processed into dairy products?
To answer this question we asked our tutors at Misericordia di Adrano.
It starts with bringing the milk to 35 degrees and then adding the rennet and letting it rest for at least an hour.
After the resting period has passed, the curds are broken and collected in large baskets. Now we can decide what to produce. If we decide to produce cheese we can enrich it with spices, such as black pepper or chili pepper, while to produce caciocavallo we have to work only with cow’s milk. Once we have decided, we can collect the curd and put the remaining whey on the fire to which milk will be added, brought to a temperature of 85 degrees.
After pouring out the lactic acid, the ricotta will be ready to be collected in small baskets. Once collected, we can continue with the preparation of the cheese. The product will have to cook for another three hours, and then remove it and leave it to rest until it rises, which depending on weather conditions can vary from two to three days. Once the levitation process is concluded, it will be massaged with salt and left to rest.
Our Sister Yolande is gaining more and more experience with each passing day. In fact, she is already able to produce cottage cheese entirely by herself. Despite various difficulties, her commitment never fails, dedicating herself deeply to her mission and showing how…God’s mercy is at work, always!
Serena Arcoria – Misericordia of Adrano