Thiruvananthapuram, The Kerala Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation , known by its brand Milma, is working on a multi-pronged strategy to strengthen the state’s cooperative dairy sector and attain self-sufficiency in milk production, as envisaged by the state government, Milma Chairman K S Mani said on Saturday.
Enhancing productivity and supporting the dairy farmers burdened by increases in input costs, are the key components in this process, Mani said in an article to mark World Milk Day, observed on June 1.
Stating that the state government has been implementing several projects to increase milk production and meet the entire domestic demand, he said the three-tier local self-government institutions play a vital role in the delivery of these schemes and enhance productivity while ensuring the welfare of the farmers.
Milma, on its part, has initiated several measures with the support of the government, Mani said.
Milma has made a significant turnaround from the grim challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, posting a higher turnover of ₹4,311 crore in 2023-24, with the strategic brand re-positioning initiative yielding handsome results, a statement said here quoting the Chairman.
Milma provides the highest milk procurement price to farmers despite the fact that the dairy sector in Kerala incurs the highest input cost, he said.
This calls for formulation of effective measures to reduce the input cost while attempting to increase productivity to achieve self-sufficiency in milk production, the official explained.
Bridging the gap between domestic milk production and demand is a priority issue for Milma, he said.
“Milma procured an average 10.31 lakhs litres of milk a day in April 2024, which increased to 11.96 lakh litres in May, while the sales stood at 17.56 lakh litres. Going forward, our focus will be on attaining self-sufficiency in milk production to meet the entire demand,” Mani said.
The cooperative dairy movement has made remarkable contributions in India, becoming the world’s largest producer of milk and accounting for 24.64 pc of the global production, Mani said.
The contributions to the dairy cooperative movement by Tribhuvandas Patel and the father of India’s White Revolution, Dr Verghese Kurien, were especially significant in this remarkable journey, he said.
“The strides that India made in the dairy sector have, in turn, brought about a qualitative socio-economic transformation across the country, especially in the rural area,” he said.
Milma, which has scrupulously followed the foundational ideals of cooperative federalism, now has over 10 lakh dairy farmers affiliated to its network of around 3,300 primary milk cooperative societies, organised under its three regional unions – Malabar, Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram.
Milma also received a series of honours and acclaims last year, in recognition of its contributions to the country’s dairy sector and the success of its initiatives, the statement added.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
