Revival of the resource potential of cattle breeding as a factor in the development of competitiveness of enterprises of the dairy product subcomplex of the agro-industrial complex of Ukraine

Permanent crises in the Ukrainian economy, the devaluation of the hryvnia, decline in household income and purchasing power, increased competition in the global market, as well as the continuous rise in world prices for food and non-food items have created new realities for enterprise functioning in the dairy subcomplex of Ukrainian agro-industrial complex and cause its transformation. World milk production and consumption are increasing. However, there are opposite trends in Ukraine: in 1990, the country produced 24.5 million tons of milk and was the 6th in the world ranking of milk producing countries, in 2020 – 9.3 million tons and the 22nd place, respectively. Therefore, the study of the reasons for the existence of these trends is very relevant. The research was based on the following methods: qualitative analysis and synthesis, economic and statistical analysis, comparisons, analytical and logical generalizations, etc. At the beginning of 2021, the total number of cattle in Ukraine amounted to 2.874 million and over the past 10 years, this number has decreased by 1.952 million, including cows – by 0.958 million. Milk production remains a small-scale branch. In 2020, 9.263 million tons of milk were produced (17.66% less than in 2010). Of these, 29.8% – in agricultural enterprises and 70.2% – in private households. However, the sanitary quality control of milk is carried out only in 14.8% of private households, therefore, in 2020, the main milk supplier for processing were agricultural enterprises, which supplied 77.2% of the total amount of milk delivered for processing, thus ensuring an increase in quality and safety of milk obtained by processing enterprises. A significant reduction in the volume of milk supplies for processing led to a decrease in the number of processing enterprises by 69.14% in 2020 compared to 1990. The main factors of transformation of the dairy subcomplex of Ukraine include declining cow population, insufficient quality of raw milk and its non-compliance with the EU regulations and standards, low technological level of milk production, insufficient quality control of raw materials, lack of modern equipment, high capital and labor intensity of production processes, rising prices for energy and other resources, lower consumption of dairy products due to low purchasing ability, increased competition in global and domestic dairy markets, etc. Possible directions of small-scale milk producers’ integration need further research.