Wishing success!

SIR, – I was interested in the article last week about Aluna Chawala going to research the ideal breed for dairy farmers in Africa and he is correct that dairying in Africa is different to the rest of the world.  
The white headed Holstein cow he is touching in last weeks photograph would only last a very short time due to the altitude and ultra violet rays which quickly produce skin cancer.
My experience supplying much genetic material and bulls and heifers to Kenya and many other African countries is that the mainly brown Ayrshire with brown legs and feet is ideal for the equatorial conditions and performing well at up to 8000 feet above sea level.
In the sixties Kenya had a relatively small dairy industry but now it boasts a population of three million Ayrshires with exports in high demand from neighbouring countries who have witnessed the breeds success in these climatic conditions.
The Ayrshire can also survive drought or food shortages better than most breeds and their length of productive life is outstanding.
On my last visit I witnessed the birth of a cow’s ninth calf and the dam was a ninth calf and the grand dam was a ninth calf out of a Brocklehill animal exported to Kenya as a maiden heifer.
Last month at the Royal Highland Show a representative of Rwanda which is just starting a dairy industry after civil war and genocide selected the brown Ayrshires from Cuthill Towers as the ideal type of animal for his project.  
Success in Africa is not about huge yields but is about sound conformation, good fertility and a long life.
I wish Aluna every success in his project.