Cheese making in Ayacucho, Peru
Practical Action
Garcia did nothing for Ayacucho. Fujimori saved us from terrorism and he also did many
works. No-one has come here since”.
One cannot help feeling empathy and even admiration when listening to Danny Bautista. He is
an entrepreneur who does not sit around waiting with his arms folded. He is a rightful
dreamer. In fact, this is one of several projects he has worked on in an effort to develop nearby
areas and he has faith. “I want to continue working in various parts of the country. I feel
capable of doing so”.
In search of help
Good intentions are not enough to put a project like Danny Bautista’s into practice in
Ayacucho. It is hard work that begins by approaching the authorities and, after the
implementation, ends by monitoring the beneficiaries who often give up. Danny Bautista knew
that his message to both the Mayor and the peasants to be trained had to be convincing. “One
has to be sincere”, he said “we cannot make any worthless promises and we must give them
clear information”
Danny had always noticed that livestock activities in the Peruvian Andes were unpredictable
and were not developed to their full potential in Ayacucho. “For example, I knew that the
cheese prepared here was very tasty. I have given some to various friends from other areas
and they were delighted. However, the presentation is poor and there was virtually no variety.”
Danny Bautista thought that with some hard work and some support from private companies,
dairy products in general and cheeses in particular could improve.
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