GOOD PRACTICE
Sustaining tradition by learning through work: the approach of a Dairy school for Serbian cheese preservation
Serbia
In post-SFRY Serbia, rural-urban migration is threatening agriculture and iconic brands such as the typical cheese 'Pirotski kačkavalj'. The Dairy School, which trains milk processors, specifically the "milk processor" educational profile, plays a vital role in the community. During the schooling, the students participate in the production of various dairy products: pasteurised milk, yoghurt, traditional cheese production, urda (a dairy product obtained by boiling milk serum), Pirot cheese (typical Serbian cheese), and others.
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After the disintegration of the SFRY, Serbia faced a clear problem of rural exodus to the cities. This also led to the devastation of agriculture. Large state dairies were unsuccessfully privatised, which created the problem of buying milk from cattle farmers. As a result, the most famous Pirotski brand "Pirotski kačkavalj" is threatened. The Dairy School took it upon itself to purchase a certain amount of milk and continue the cheese production. Students and teachers produced up to 200 kg of this product every day.
The Dairy School trains, among other things, a 'milk processor'. This profile lasts three years. From the first class, students are introduced to the milk processing production plant located within the school. During their studies, students participate in the production of various milk products: pasteurised milk, yoghurt, cheese, Urda, Pirot cheese... Through learning by doing, the students acquire the necessary practical knowledge that will be useful for their future work. At the same time, they learn the traditional recipe for the production of Pirot cheese, thus preserving the local brand from oblivion.
Pirot cheese is produced in the dairy school in the traditional way, according to the first preserved written recipe from 1882. By passing on this knowledge from teachers to students, the tradition of the Pirot region and Serbia as a whole is saved from oblivion. A potential problem is the declining interest of young people in agriculture, food production and processing. Therefore, the number of students who would enrol in the Dairy School is decreasing. Another serious problem is the lack of basic raw materials (milk from pastures and farms). There are fewer and fewer people involved in animal husbandry.
Learning by doing has proven to be the best way for students to acquire practical knowledge and skills. From 1945 until today, more than 5,000 milk producers have graduated from the school, and today they are the bearers of production in dairies all over Serbia. In the 90s, our teachers and students preserved the most famous Pirot brand "Pirotski kačkavalj" and achieved continuity of production.
