OMFED price hike to benefit milk producers

The proposed increase in the milk prices by the state-owned Orissa State Cooperative Milk Producer Federation Limited (OMFED) will benefit around 2.54 lakh milk producers in the state as the federation has decided to provide over 87 percent of the hiked price to the producers.

OMFED has decided to hike the milk price by Rs 2 per liter from October 11. Out of this, Rs 1.75 will go to the milk producers, said the chairman-cum-managing director of OMFED, Satyabrat Sahu.

While OMFED will get 10 paise, the rest Rs 0.15 will be shared equally by the milk societies, dealers and unions.

 

Following the hike, the milk producers, on an average, will get Rs 17 per liter for supplying to the societies. Besides the procurement cost, the OMFED bears other costs like packing, processing and transportation of the milk.

With this the cost of toned milk will be Rs 24 per liter in the state.

The milk producers had demanded a hike of Rs 6 per liter in the procurement price to bring it at par with the price offered by other private procurement agencies like Seashore in Orissa and Bijaya Visakha Dairy Cooperative in Andhra Pradesh. These agencies are giving higher procurement price than OMFED, said general secretary, Ganjam and Gajapati Districts Milk Producers Union, Ramesh Chandra Padhy.

The union officials feared the milk producers would divert their supply to other procurement agencies in districts like Gajapati, Rayagada and Koraput, which are offering higher prices than OMFED.

OMFED, on an average, procures 3.50 lakh liters of milk and markets 4.70 lakh liters per day. The procurement and supply gap is filled up with the processing of milk with milk powders. The main objective of OMFED is to promote, produce, procure, process and market milk and milk products.

“Orissa is the only state where the milk producers are getting lower rate compared to other states”, said Padhy. While procurement price in Andhra Pradesh is Rs 21 per liter, the same is Rs 25 per liter in Gujarat. Similarly, Chhattisgarh and Karnatak governments are providing incentives to the milk producers who supplyto the society.

OMFED chief Sahu, however, said OMFED was providing several “invisible benefits” to the members of the societies. The benefits like subsidy in cattle feed; growing grass and health check up and medicines for the animals are being provided under different government schemes, he added.