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Mother Dairy takes on Amul in Mumbai

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Viveat Susan Pinto Mumbai

New Delhi-based milk major Mother Dairy is beefing up its presence in Mumbai — a market it entered three years ago, and which is dominated by its arch-rival Amul. Unlike in New Delhi and the National Capital Region where Mother Dairy has a presence via company-owned booths as well as in allied retail outlets, it has to depend only on the latter in Mumbai.

As both national and regional brands try to outdo each other, milk distribution in the financial capital is fierce. Besides, the market is fragmented with players, such as Amul, Mahanand, Warna, Dwarka and Gokul, having a retail presence in excess of 13,000-15,000 outlets. In comparison, Mother Dairy has 10,000 outlets in Mumbai till now. But, according to company executives, it is ramping up the number of outlets.

Mumbai is among the larger consumers of milk in India. On an average, an individual in Mumbai consumes about 200 milllitres of milk a day, second only to the north, where average consumption is about 260-270 milllitres a day.
Milk production in India is pegged at about 122 million tonnes per annum. Of this, processed milk accounts for 35 per cent, while unprocessed (which is the unorganised sector) is 65 per cent.

The organised national milk brands in India include Amul, Mother Dairy, Hatsun and Kwality. Of this, Amul and Mother Dairy are promoted by cooperatives Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) and National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), respectively.

In Delhi, Mother Dairy, which has been around for over three decades, has about 15,000 outlets, including 3,000 booths. It has a market share in excess of 60-65 per cent across categories — milk and dairy products. In Mumbai, the company’s share in milk (primarily, pouch milk) is about 9-10 per cent in comparison to Amul, which is closer to 40 per cent.

But Mother Dairy leads in dairy products, such as set curd or dahi, in Mumbai, launched simultaneously with pouch milk three years ago. Its market share in dahi in Mumbai is 20 per cent compared to Amul’s 18-19 per cent. There are allied players in dahi too, such as Nestle, Danone and Britannia, but Mother Dairy and Amul have a clear leg-up in the city.

Subhashis Basu, head of dairy and frozen products at Mother Dairy, says the focus on items such as dahi is growing as consumption increases. At present, Mother Dairy’s dahi portfolio reaches some 4,500 outlets in Mumbai, which will be ramped up to 6,000 outlets going forward. It is also expanding its frozen portfolio with the introduction of fruit and flavoured yoghurts and regional desserts such as misti doi in Mumbai. In the coming months, similar frozen products will be launched in keeping with consumers’ tastes and preferences, he adds.

In ice creams, Mother Dairy stands fourth after Amul, Vadilal and Kwality Walls in Mumbai. But Basu says it is growing in double digits in the segment. The firm has also increased production of yoghurts, dahi, cheese and UHT milk at its plants in Mumbai, Thane, Vashi and Baramati. These places will double-up as hubs for the western region, as Mother Dairy looks to enhance its presence in Pune and Bangalore. The coming months will also see the milk major step into states such as Madhya Pradesh and Orissa in a bid to acquire a national footprint.

Amul, too, in the last one year has kicked off a massive distribution exercise to make its dairy products available in small towns and cities. The aim, according to R S Sodhi, managing director, GCMMF, is to derive incremental growth from these new markets.

 

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First Published: Mar 02 2012 | 12:09 AM IST

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