Karnataka Milk Federation to set up plant near Mumbai after brand's success

Karnataka Milk Federation supplies 85,000 tonnes of milk daily to Mumbai, riding on the reputation of its Nandini brand.

The Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) plans to set up a milk processing unit near Mumbai, setting up its first plant outside south India after the success of its Nandini brand in the state.

The company launched Nandini in Mumbai in October 2016 and now supplies 85,000 tonnes of milk daily to the financial capital.

“We currently supply milk from Karnataka to Mumbai. Now, we are waiting for this daily milk-handling volume to achieve 100,000 tonnes, for us to start our own processing-cum-packing unit here (Mumbai),” said Mrityunjay Kulkarni, Director of Marketing of KMF.

Karnataka became a milk surplus state after the government incentive of offering farmers Rs 5 per litre spurred production.

KMF plans to succeed in Maharashtra by introducing premium products like pasteurized toned milk, special pasteurized homogenized toned milk and long-life Nandini buffalo milk.

The company has its eyes on Pune too, hoping supply from Belgaum will save on transport cost. 

Kulkarni said a Rs 2,000 crore infrastructure development programme is nearing completion and it will allow KMF to expand its presence in Maharashtra. The programme includes a 35 tonne cheese plant near Bengaluru, a 40 tonne milk powder and pet bottle plant for flavoured milk in Hasan district, 5 mega dairies in Mysore, Kolar, Tumkur, Mandya and Hasan. On an average, KMF reports collection of 7.6 million litres of milk per day from 2.4 million farmers in the state.