More than 60% of the milk procured by Aavin in 10 district unions during May 2026 failed to meet the cooperative’s minimum quality standards, raising concerns over milk quality and procurement practices in Tamil Nadu. According to Aavin’s official records, milk sourced from districts including Thanjavur, Mayiladuthurai, Vellore, Ranipet, Kanniyakumari, Villupuram and Virudhunagar did not consistently achieve the prescribed 4% fat and 8% solids-not-fat (SNF) levels.
Under normal circumstances, only 10–20% of milk procured in certain district unions falls short of these standards, but the proportion exceeded 60% in May. Data showed that around 90% of milk procured from the Kanniyakumari and Virudhunagar unions failed to meet the required fat and SNF norms, while approximately 84% of milk from the Vellore union contained less than the minimum 4% fat, and 82% had SNF below 8%.
In contrast, 93–95% of milk procured in the Karur and Tiruppur unions met the prescribed quality requirements. Aavin officials suspect water adulteration as a major factor behind the reduced fat and SNF levels, noting that milk failing quality norms requires additional expenditure on milk powder and butter to reconstitute products such as Green Magic and Full Cream Milk, increasing production costs.
Farmer representatives, however, attributed the issue to low procurement prices, rising cattle feed costs, and changes in cattle breeds, arguing that private dairies offering ₹6–₹12 more per litre are attracting higher-quality milk away from Aavin while rising input costs have reduced farmers’ ability to invest in quality feed and mineral supplements. The development underscores the growing challenge for cooperative dairies in maintaining milk quality while balancing farmer remuneration, procurement competitiveness and production costs.
Source: Dairynews7x7 2 July, 2026 Read full story here
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