State ranked 5th in milk production & 3rd in generating direct employment in registered dairy units
With an annual dairy output worth over Rs 12,500 crore, Gujarat has acquired highest share of about 21 per cent in terms of total dairy output worth over Rs 60,000 crore across top 20 states in India, according to an ASSOCHAM study on dairy sector.However with 12 per cent share, Gujarat has ranked third in terms of generating direct employment in the dairy sector, besides, the state is ranked fourth with a share of about 7.5 per cent in 1493 dairy factories across India, noted a study titled 'Unlocking Growth of Potential of Indian Dairy Industry,' conducted by The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).
In terms of milk production, Gujarat is ranked fifth with about eight per cent share across India in total milk production of over 120 MT. Besides, Gujarat has recorded fifth highest growth rate of about 24 per cent in milk production which is above the all-India growth rate of about 19 per cent, highlighted the study prepared by the ASSOCHAM Economic Research Bureau (AERB).
In terms of per-capita milk availability, the state has ranked fifth and the state has clocked a growth rate of about 17 per cent in this regard which is well above all-India growth rate of 12 per cent.
While Andhra Pradesh (AP) has recorded highest growth in terms of both milk production and per-capita milk availability thereby clocking a growth rate of over 41 per cent and about 36 per cent (approx.) during the five year period of 2006-10, however the state ranked third in terms of milk production with over 1.1 million tons (mt) of milk produced annually.
Apart from AP, the states of Rajasthan (28 per cent), Kerala (24.8 per cent), Karnataka (24 per cent) and Gujarat (23.7 per cent) are amid top five states in terms of clocking high growth in milk production.
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"Milk production across India has grown at a significant rate of about 19 per cent during the aforesaid period with overall milk production crossing 121 mt mark as of 2010-11 but despite being the largest milk producer in the world, per-capita milk availability in India at 252 grams falls below the global average of 279 grams per person per day," said Mr D.S. Rawat, national secretary general of ASSOCHAM while releasing the chamber's study.
It is imperative for India's dairy industry to streamline its value chain processes and integrate the smallholder dairy producers into the processing value chain in order to improve the overall performance of the industry, more so as they possess inherent strengths like low production costs, lower liabilities and limited liquidity risk, said Mr Rawat. "However, lack of knowledge and technical know-how, poor access to support services, limited access to credit and poor milk quality together limit the ability of smallholder dairy producers to take advantage of market opportunities."
New Zealand (9773 grams), Ireland (3260 grams) and Denmark (2411 grams) are top three countries in terms of per-capita milk availability.
Growing at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of over four per cent, milk production in India is expected to rise to about 177 mt by 2019-2020 and that would help in meeting the projected demand of 150 mt by 2016-17 that has been envisaged in National Dairy Plan Phase-1, said Mr Rawat. "The increase in the income level of an average Indian is being accompanied by a change in the food basket as the monthly per-capita consumption expenditure on milk and milk products in both rural and urban areas has grown significantly at about 92 per cent and 72 per cent respectively."
Uttar Pradesh (UP) commands highest share of over 17 per cent in total milk production followed by Rajasthan (11 per cent share), Andhra Pradesh (nine per cent), Punjab (about eight per cent) and Gujarat (about eight per cent) which are amid top five states with a combined share of over 53 per cent.
Punjab has recorded highest per-capita milk availability of 937 grams as per latest available data followed by Haryana (679 grams), Rajasthan (538 grams), Himachal Pradesh (446 grams) and Gujarat (435 grams).
While, Andhra Pradesh has recorded highest growth rate of about 36 per cent in terms of improvement seen in per-capita milk availability followed by Kerala (21 per cent approx.), Rajasthan (20 per cent approx.), Karnataka (19 per cent) and Gujarat (17 per cent approx.).
Concentration of milk production in some pockets together with high cost of transportation has led to rising disparity amid states in terms of per-capita milk availability, noted the ASSOCHAM study.
There is an urgent need to build up strategies to increase competitiveness in all segments of dairy chain, input supply, milk production, processing, distribution and retailing, recommended the ASSOCHAM study. For promotion of dairy sector in India, emphasis now needs to be more on how to involve and encourage the village population into proactively adopting dairy industry as a viable alternative to the agricultural activity.
Promoting dairy entrepreneurship, strengthening economic viability of dairy farms, increasing the link between rural production areas and urban markets and promotion of small quantity packaging to meet the needs of poor are certain key areas highlighted by the ASSOCHAM study with a view to formulate a long-term growth strategy for the dairy sector.
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