Cross-border sale: NDDB calls milk coop feds’ meet to sort issue

Earlier, KCMMF, known by the brand Milma, had voiced serious concern over Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) foraying into parts of Kerala to sell its Nandini brand of liquid milk The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) will be holding a meeting of the chairman and managing directors of co-operative dairy federations of the country this month…

Amul, Nandini, Aavin… and politicisation of milk cooperatives

In a country where cows are worshipped, the White Revolution is a forgotten spectacle. When Gujarat-born Amul, perceived to have been mollycoddled by the grand old party aeons ago but now backed by double-engine governments, makes a beeline for Karnataka, political parties are caught in the crossfire of canards. It is a perfect turf for…

Beyond Nandini-Amul debate, dairying is an uphill task for many

If Nanje Gowda, a farmer at Kirugavulu in Mandya district, has sold off all three cows and stopped dairy farming in the last two years, his friends Nanjunde Gowda and Nage Gowda have reduced the number of cows as the rising cost of feed and fodder, coupled with an unattractive remuneration, has hit the dairy…

5 dairy brands that made India one of the top milk producer globally

India was the highest milk producer in the world in the year 2021-2022, contributing to 24% of the world’s milk production, according to the data from Food and Agriculture Organization Corporate Statistical Database (FAOSTAT). During the same period, Rajasthan emerged as the highest milk-producing state in the country, contributing to 15.05% of the total milk…

Buying Amul not against Karnataka’: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke out on the recent controversy surrounding the entry of Amul into Karnataka, stating that the accusations of bringing in Amul to kill Nandini were “brazen.” Speaking at the Thinkers Forum in Karnataka, Sitharaman alleged that the issue had been tweaked and twisted for political gain during the upcoming Assembly…

Amul over Nandini? No whey

No creature—celestial or mortal—has been coveted, abducted or stolen as much and as many times as the sacred cow Nandini. She appears as the same as Kamadhenu in most stories, but as her daughter in a few. The list of her abductors is long—Vishwamitra, Satyavrata, the Ashtavasus, to name a few. Now Siddaramaiah has added…

Milma vs Nandini: Consumers must benefit in dairy war

Two dairy wars are happening in two southern states—Kerala and Karnataka—involving three dominant milk cooperatives. Nandini, a brand owned by the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF), is facing a threat from Amul, owned by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, in its home state. The Karnataka-based cooperative is accused of encroaching into the market territory of…

Why the Amul-Nandini Controversy Is Important

The controversy about Amul coming into Bengaluru to sell liquid milk and curd has opened a new debate on whether it is threatening the local brand Nandini. While this looks like one more fishing expedition by the minister for co-operation after he dropped a hint of Amul and Nandini “working together”, it may be important…

Milma resents entry of Nandini milk brand in Kerala

The Kerala Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (KCMMF), known by the brand Milma, has voiced serious concern over the tendency of some State milk marketing federations to aggressively enter markets outside their respective States, holding that this involved a breach of the cooperative spirit based on which the country’s dairy sector has been organised for the…

Milk cooperatives indulged in market distorting tactics

The new controversy in election-bound Karnataka is, surprisingly, around two large and successful dairy cooperatives —Amul (brand owned by Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, GCMMF) and Nandini (brand owned by Karnataka Milk Federation, KMF). The debate seems to have been kick-started by two events: a statement in December 2022 that if Amul and Nandini work…