Amul raises milk prices by Rs 2 a litre

Prices to go up in Ahmedabad and Saurashtra region from May 4, other regions to follow

Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which markets the Amul brand of milk, has decided to raise the price of all Amul milk variants by Rs 2 a litre with effect from May 4, Sunday in Ahmedabad and Saurashtra region.

R S Sodhi, managing director, GSMMF, said that,"We are raising prices in Ahmedabad and Saurashtra region from tomorrow, and other regions would follow soon, in around a week or 10 days time."

The last time Amul had raised prices of milk in October 2013. Following the price rise, Amul Gold (full cream) milk will cost Rs 46 a litre, while Amul Shakti would cost Rs 42 a litre. Sodhi informed that Amul Taza (toned milk) will cost Rs 34 a litre and Amul Slim and Trim double toned milk will be Rs 32 a litre.

As for the reasons behind the price rise he said, "Cost of production as well as inflation are the major reasons, and production is also down during the summer months." Sodhi added that GCMMF had been paying 10-12% higher price for procurement from farmers in the last two to three months, while compared to the year before period, the prices are up by around 18%. Milk production is also down by around 25% during summer months, which is traditionally the calving season for bovine animals.

GCMMF procures nearly 12 million litres of milk per day and sells around 4.5 million litres per day in Gujarat.