Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) has chalked out its action plan to enter the newer markets. The Federation has now initiated efforts to open depots in New Delhi, Nagpur, Jodhpur, Tamil Nadu and Assam.
The key objective is to help dispose off its value-added milk products. “We have achieved a record procurement of 52 lakh litres of milk per day,” G Somesekar Reddy, chairman, KMF, said.
“There is an excess production of milk in the state which has spurred the Federation to augment its market expansion efforts. In the last fortnight, it has managed to dispose off 1,100 tons of butter,” he added.
The government of Karnataka has mooted several schemes. The Department of Women & Child Development has identified 20 lakh Anganwadi children and five lakh adolescent girls who will be supplied skimmed milk powder.
“This would help us to account for 1,000 million tonnes of milk per month between December 1, 2012 to March 31, 2013,” Reddy added.
Five districts in northern Karnataka – Bidar, Gulbarga, Yadgiri, Bellary and Koppal – have been categorised as backward, and KMF will supply 60 million tonnes of milk powder for the malnourished children of these districts.
In order to make payments effectively to the milk producers or the milk farmers on time, the state government has come forward with a subsidy where the milk unions can avail financial assistance from the public sector banks at four per cent interest.
According to the KMF chairman, the move would bring relief to the milk farmers. There are over 2.13 million milk producers in over 11,443 dairy cooperative societies at the village level, functioning under 13 district cooperative milk unions in the state.
“Our aim is to usher rural prosperity through dairy development. During the last four decades of cooperative dairy development by KMF, the dairy industry in the state has progressed from a situation of milk-scarcity to that of milk-surplus,” he said.
Nationally, KMF is now the second largest dairy cooperative after the Gujarat Cooperative, which is known for its Amul brand.
