Including milk in our daily diet is always recommended by nutritionists, dieticians, and doctors. It is recommended that every human being, from birth to the grave, has milk and/or milk products to maintain calcium.
However, a constant hike in milk prices has made it difficult for the common man to buy milk. In fact, those who are poor or below the poverty line equalize milk prices to gold prices.
Curious Case Of Rising Milk Prices
Milk and milk product inflation has surged virtually continually over the last 20 months, and it has routinely outpaced the country’s total price growth in the last five months.
With the exception of small declines in February 2022 and July 2022, the rate of inflation in the milk and milk products category of the Consumer Price Index has climbed practically every month from July 2021 to February 2023.
According to price data from the Department of Consumer Affairs, the average price of one litre of milk has climbed to Rs 56.8 on 4 April, 2023 — the most recent date for which data is available — from Rs 51.4 a year earlier; a 10.5% increase in one year.
Also Read: ResearchED: Sale Of Breast Milk Rising In India
Why Is This Happening?
According to people close to the milk sector, the explanation for this could be a combination of supply and demand considerations, with the pandemic having a crucial part.
B.S. Chandel, former Principal Scientist at the National Dairy Research Institute, in an interview with The Print said, “The main reason for the increase in milk prices is due to a rise in input costs, a part of which is due to the rise in fodder prices. The price of concentrates and minerals used in the composite feed for milch cattle has also risen.”
He went on to say that the country’s feed supply is just 60% of the demand, therefore rising feed input prices have had a knock-on effect on milk pricing.
Here’s What The Current Prez Of IDA Said
According to R.S. Sodhi, former managing director of Amul and current President of the Indian Dairy Association, while supply concerns are clearly a factor, the issue also stems from rising demand for milk products.
Sodhi added, “Another factor is that the pandemic disruptions meant that artificial insemination of the cattle could not be done during that period, which meant that calving was delayed, the impact of which is felt only two years down the line.”
Sodhi went on to say that the hike in milk costs is primarily due to increased demand.
According to studies, the lumpy skin disease, which has been affecting cattle in India significantly over the last year, has had little influence on milk output in the country.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Print
Find the blogger: Palak Dogra
This post is tagged under: milk, milk prices, milk rates, milk prices in India, Amul, Mother Dairy, Indian Dairy Association
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