From Forecast to Fact: 2025 Lessons, 2026 Dairy Outlook
As we step into 2026, it is worth pausing to reflect on how the Indian dairy sector navigated the challenges of 2025 and how closely reality tracked the forecasts I outlined in the first blog of last year. 2025-dynamic-year-ahead-indian-dairy In January 2025, the central thesis was clear — Indian dairying would confront seasonal volatility, heat-induced…
India–NZ Dairy FTA: Safeguards or Silent Slippages?
The recently concluded India–New Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA) marks an important milestone in bilateral trade, while carefully ring-fencing India’s sensitive dairy sector. Under the agreement, core dairy products such as milk, cream, butter, cheese, yoghurt, whey and casein remain excluded from duty-free access, reflecting India’s long-standing policy to protect millions of small dairy farmers….
Planetary Health Diet and Dairy: Choosing More Than Two
I remember reading the EAT–Lancet Commission’s Planetary Health Diet report for the first time in 2019. It was being hailed as a global roadmap for feeding 10 billion people sustainably by 2050. At first glance, the concept looked noble—more fruits, more vegetables, more grains, and less of everything that comes from an animal. Then I…
Clean Milk at Risk: Farmers Hit by 18% GST on Technology
Progressive dairy farmers across India are questioning the government’s intent behind keeping essential technologies like bulk milk coolers and milking machines under the 18% GST slab. They ask: is the government not confident of their capability to adopt modern practices that ensure hygienic milk production and higher yields? Farmers argue that calling this a “farmer-friendly…
Dairy GST Cuts Bring Consumer Savings, Farmer Prosperity
India’s recent GST changes for dairy—cutting rates from 12% to 5% on ghee, cheese, and ice-cream (without chocolate), and zeroing GST on UHT milk, paneer, and chhanna—deliver significant cost relief across value-added segments. Ghee-bearing households may pocket savings of around ₹42 per kilogram, assuming full pass-through. Packaged paneer and UHT milk, now exempt, could become…
Productivity Gains Mean Little Without Fair Pay to Farmers
As India commemorates its 79th Independence Day, a moment of profound gratitude and collective reflection on the nation’s remarkable journey, few narratives resonate as powerfully as the transformation of its dairy sector. We went from a country with very little milk to becoming the world leader in dairy. This wasn’t just about making more milk;…
Global Dairy Intelligence Connects East and West
India’s DairyNews7X7.com Joins Forces with Argentina’s eDairyNews.com New Delhi, India / Córdoba, Argentina – DairyNews7X7.com, India’s premier dairy‑sector news platform founded by Kuldeep Sharma (aka Dairyguru), today announces a strategic global partnership with eDairyNews.com, Argentina’s leading international dairy news portal operated by Dairy Corp, directed by Alejandro Maurino. About DairyNews7X7.com (India / Asia) Founded in 2020…
In Despair’s Wake: When Dairy Dreams Die Under Bank Pressure
I’ve just learned of a heart breaking suicide by a dairy entrepreneur in Madurai—not the first, but perhaps the most urgent yet. Today, I call upon the entire dairy fraternity to confront a vital question: in the eyes of the system, what truly is the value of a dairy farmer’s or entrepreneur’s life? These individuals…
Milk Under Siege: Exposing the Truth Behind Dairy Myths
In recent years, a surge of misinformation targeting dairy products has emerged, often propagated by self-proclaimed health experts and even some qualified medical professionals through social media platforms. This paper aims to critically examine these claims, fact-check popular myths, and present scientifically validated insights into the nutritional value of dairy products. It also addresses the…
Cows, Climate Resilience, and the Human Dilemma
Over the last three days, I have had the privilege of participating in thought-provoking workshops on rural development and climate-resilient dairying. Amidst all the innovative discussions, one stark truth emerged: the problem does not lie in designing policies or ensuring that benefits trickle down to the people. The real challenge is in defining the true…