Centre for private dairy sector to tackle rising milk demand

To meet the growing demand for milk, the government is working on a series of proposals to further liberalise the dairy sector and encourage entrepreneurs from the private sector.

Officials said the department of animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries is expected to grant priority sector lending status to the dairy sector, even for a more than Rs 1-crore loan. Initiatives like milk processing centres, chilling centres, bulk milk coolers and fodder plants could all be covered under this.

At present, India, which is the world’s largest producer of milk, relies largely on the unorganised sector for its output. However, growing economic power and changing food habits are putting an increasing pressure on milk supplies. India’s domestic demand for milk is growing at about six million tonnes per year whereas annual incremental production over the last 10 years has been about 3.5 million tonnes per year.

“Focus on improving fodder availability is also vital for increasing the country’s milk production,” officials said, adding that the finance ministry has been approached to fund the initiative. “Considering that the requirement of milk in 2021-22 is expected to be 180 million tonnes, production must increase at around 5.5 per cent per annum for the next 12 years. If it fails to do so, India may need to resort to imports from the world market,” said the government’s Economic Survey report, released last month.

The increase in milk prices in recent times contributed to rising food inflation. In fact, the Government had banned exports of skimmed milk powder.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, in his budget, had allocated Rs 300 crore each for a programme to promote animal-based protein production like milk, egg and fish and for increasing fodder output.