 "30% rise in milk procurement cost hits dairy firms’ margins")
Producers of dairy products are facing pressure on their profit margins due to a sharp hike in milk procurement prices this season.
Private dairies in Maharashtra were able to procure milk at Rs 17-18 a litre in 2014-15 due to a glut in supply but did not reduce the prices of their products. Since then milk prices started increasing to Rs 20-21 a litre in October last year.
Up to a point, dairy companies were maintaining their product prices by cushioning the increase in costs. But since November, milk procurement prices have shot up 30 per cent to Rs 28-29
