CHENNAI: Even as the severity of the Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak among cattle is being assessed by the Animal Husbandry department, milk production across the State has fallen by around 30 per cent.
Industry sources attribute the yield reduction to an absence of grazing owing to the monsoon and the outbreak. While around 100 cattle have been diagnosed with FMD so far, over one lakh were treated for various other illnesses at special camps organised in October and November, according to an official press release.
"Aavin milk procurement has come down from 41 lakh litres a day to 32-34 lakh litres over the past few weeks. Concentrate of protein supplements is no match for natural grazing. Spread of FMD in a few districts also brought down milk production," said Aavin MD KS Kandasamy. However, he promised uninterrupted milk supply to Aavin consumers.
Until March last year, daily milk production in the State stood at 2.1 crore litres, of which 25 lakh litres were used by dairy farmers themselves. While State-owned Aavin procured about 36 lakh litres, the remaining was procured by private dairy companies for commercial market.
Forty-five lakh litres were thus sent to hotels, tea shops, hospitals, and other commercial establishments, and 35-45 lakh litres were sold through retailers. About 60-62 lakh litres were used for making products such as ghee, milk powder, butter, sweets, and other items under various brands. Daily demand, which fell to 1.2 crore litres during the lockdown, rose recently to 1.9 crore.
Curiously, however, private milk companies has slashed procurement price of milk, despite the reduction in production, sources said. “Private milk companies have been altering the procurement prices as per their whims and fancies. While Aavin provides Rs 32 a litre, private milk companies offer only Rs 24-27 a litre,” said S Kandavel, a dairy farmer from Vellore.
Meanwhile, a section of cattle owners from Vellore and Tiruvannamalai districts said Solids-Not-Fat (SNF) level of milk, which determines the market price of milk, is fluctuating markedly after cattle showed symptoms of FMD, for the past two months.
Tamil Nadu Milk Producers Welfare Association’s state general secretary MG Rajendran demanded that the government fix a Minimum Support Price (MSP) for milk. "Presently, over 84 per cent of milk produced in the State is procured by private companies. The government should consider increasing it procurement share by way of selling milk powder through PDS shops," he suggested.
Numbers speak
1.9 - 2 crore litres a day
Milk production before monsoon
1.45 crore litres a day
Current milk production