Unseasonal rains raise milk production in K'taka

The unseasonal rains that pounded Karnataka in March not only left a trail of death and destruction, but also had a positive effect : It has increased milk production.

The Karnataka Cooperative Milk Producers' Federation Ltd (KMF), the umbrella body of dairy farmers' cooperatives in the state, has said its milk procurement has peaked to 3.2 million litres per day since Wednesday as against the daily average of 2.9 million litres.

"These rains have occurred at a time when the mercury levels were supposed to soar. That has reduced stress on the animals, resulting in increased milk production. The trend is likely to continue for another week," KMF managing director I R Ramalinge Gowda told Business Standard.

The state, in fact, had recorded a rainfall of 120 mm between March 20 and March 30, the highest for the period in the last 108 years. The average rainfall usually expected in March is a mere 8-10 mm. The rains had claimed 26 lives and destroyed standing crop over 182,000 hectares, the damage caused has been assessed at Rs 541 crore.

But on the flip side, the rains put a smile on the face of dairy farmers who were beginning to feel the heat of inflation. Explained KMF assistant general manager (marketing) Channakrishnaiah: "Summer temperatures cause heat stress in cows, especially among the hybrid varieties, and that leads to decreased milk yield. But the rains have reduced the heat stress to a great extent. Moreover, it has increased the cows' matter intake with the rise in the green cover."

Though the surge in milk production caught the KMF on the wrong foot, the officials maintained that it has not thrown their procurement and supply operations out of gear. "As our daily handling capacity is 3.4 million litres, we have been able to absorb the increased milk production," Gowda said. Of the 3.2 million litres being produced presently every day, 2.65 million litres is consumed directly and the surplus 550,000 litres is either converted or sold to the neighbouring states.

The KMF, which has been supplying 150,000 litres to milk-deficit Kerala on a daily basis, has decided to divert a part of the surplus to the state. Channakrishna said: "As Kerala is celebrating Vishu, the new year, we will increase our present supply to it by another 50,000 litres. The festival has actually helped us market the milk." KMF has been selling milk to Kerala at Rs 14.90 per litre. This apart, the KMF has decided to route the surplus milk to Mother Dairy in Delhi for conversion into milk powder. "We are also supplying milk to Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry," Gowda added.

The surplus production has also forced the KMF to expedite the commissioning of the milk processing plant at Channarayapatna in Hassan district. "The plant is scheduled to be inaugurated during June-July this year and it can handle and can convert 1 million litres into milk-related products," Channakrishnaiah said.

Not just the KMF, the rains have also increased milk supply to private dairies in the state which normally down their shutters when summer peaks as it is the lean season for milk production. There are about five private dairies operating in the state, mainly in the border districts.