ASSESSMENT OF THE STATE AND TRENDS IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS IN BREEDING DAIRY FARMS OF UKRAINE

The global dairy sector has been significantly impacted in recent years, with experts assessing the consequences as a serious threat to the food security of the world's population. The biggest destabilising factors for the industry were the effects of the pandemic, war, inflation and high energy prices. Despite the steady increase in demand for milk, there is currently no trend towards a recovery in production growth. Dairy producers are under constant pressure from the above factors, resulting in lower margins, difficult access to competitive capital, and constant adaptation to new regulations. In the current political, economic and climatic conditions, one of the possible ways to increase the profitability of the dairy industry as a major incentive to increase production is the widespread introduction of innovative technological approaches to milk production. The purpose of the article is to assess the state and trends in the implementation of innovative technological solutions in dairy farming in Ukraine on the example of Ukrainian breeding dairy farms. Research results. In order to ensure the survival of the national dairy industry during the active military phase, as well as its rapid development in the post-war period, created a Roadmap for the restoration of the dairy industry. The Roadmap is primarily aimed at ensuring sustainable long-term development of the dairy industry; creation and operation of highly efficient and financially sustainable dairy farms; stimulating the construction of modern dairy enterprises with widespread introduction of innovations aimed at increasing the international competitiveness of the industry. Our research has shown that in recent years, the dynamics of modernisation processes in Ukrainian dairy farming has accelerated. In particular, in the Holstein herds, the productivity of cows kept in dairy complexes increased by 1882 kg per cow, or 470 kg per year on average, in 2016–2020. At the same time, increasing the efficiency of milk production through the introduction of innovative technological solutions will result in a mega-trend of farm consolidation in the future. For example, in the US, 50.3% of milk is produced at industrial large-scale dairies with more than 1.000 cows, where the latest science and technology is used. The influence of the factor of production concentration on the efficiency of the use of breeding animals of dairy and dairy-meat cattle breeds was studied. The average number of cows in the controlled breeding herds of dairy breeds in Ukraine (n = 350) in 2019 was 400 cows. The average milk yield per cow was 7.540 kg. According to the results of the analysis, as the number of cows in the farms grows, economic indicators such as revenue, profitability, and profitability increase. Conclusions. In recent years, a quarter of breeding farms for the most numerous specialised dairy breeds have been involved in the innovation process in pedigree dairy cattle breeding, with more than 50% of the number of breeding cows of these breeds concentrated there. The small herds used traditional technologies for keeping and using cows. The introduction of the latest innovative technological solutions for industrial milk production ensures an increase in revenues from its sale due to the growth of cow productivity. As the concentration of cows increases, the industry's performance indicators, such as milk yield, feed intake and the intensity of land use, are also increasing. The industry's profitability is increasing from 14.7% to over 24.2%. When creating new livestock complexes in the post-war period, the best international and domestic experience of the industry should be taken into account. The development of the dairy farming sector should be aimed at breeding specialised dairy cattle breeds and introducing innovative technologies for their maintenance, feeding and operation. Domestic specialised dairy breeds are at the level of the best European analogues in terms of productivity in industrial dairy complexes, and are superior in terms of reproduction and health, are economically viable and should become the basis for further development of the dairy cattle industry in Ukraine.