India imports Gir Bull semen from Brazil to improve productivity

India has imported 40,000 doses of bull semen from Brazil for the first time to boost milk output via artificial insemination, a top official at the Brazilian embassy said. The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which has imported the doses, aims to increase the number of Indian native breeds, Gir and Kankrej, and raise their…

Odisha government inks pact with NDDB for Anthrax, ENT shots

The Odisha government has signed an MoU with the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) for the establishment of a production unit of Anthrax and ENT vaccines. The unit will come up at Odisha Biological Products Institute in Berhampur. Anthrax is an infectious bacterial disease of animals and particularly affects cattle and sheep. On the other…

Maharashtra’s Mahanand Dairy board passes resolution for takeover by NDDB

The board of directors at Mahanand Dairy, a once-profitable venture under the Maharashtra government, has sanctioned a resolution to transfer the dairy’s control to the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). However, milk producers in the State are expressing concerns and alleging that the government and the board have decided to facilitate Amul’s expansion in Maharashtra….

NDDB plans to extend Amul model to Kenya, says Chairman Meenesh Shah

After Sri Lanka, the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) plans to take the Amul model of milk cooperatives to Kenya, Meenesh Shah, chairman of NDDB, said here on Saturday. “I am hopeful that the model that we took to Sri Lanka can be replicated for the small dairy farmers of Kenya,” Shah said while speaking at…

IIL invests Rs 700 cr in new vaccine plant to combat FMD and HS

Biotechnology company Indian Immunologicals (IIL), under the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), on Thursday announced the start of the construction of its new vaccine manufacturing plant at Genome Valley, Hyderabad. The company is investing around Rs 700 crore in this facility. Equipped with a BSL3 (biosafety level) facility for drug substance production and a Fill-Finish…

Retail prices of pouch milk by Mother Dairy and coops could hike soon

Retail prices of packaged milk supplied by dairy cooperatives and Mother Dairy could see another round of hike soon, owing to the rise in costs of feed and other inputs. “As we have to hike procurement prices of milk from farmers, there could be one more round of increase in prices by cooperatives,” Meenesh C Shah, chairman, National Dairy…

Fingerprinting:Tracking Chemicals and Cos Behind Unsafe Milk

Indian Dairy Association organized a Seminar on “Safer Dairy Products – Challenges for Industry and Administrators” in Delhi. The seminar featured two Panel discussions, the first focusing on nutrition and the other on the safety of milk. I am grateful to the Indian Dairy Association for providing me the opportunity to moderate the session on…

NDDB pitches for boosting dairy exports as milk output is set to rise

With India set to increase its share in the global milk production over the next decade, it is time to look at expanding the share in export market, said NDDB Chairman and Managing Director Meenesh Shah on Friday. Addressing the 20th Convocation of The Indian Institute of Plantation Management, Bengaluru (IIPM-B), Shah said India currently accounts…

Natural livestock farming to reduce antibiotic use in dairy sector

In the world-wide quest for dairy modernisation, the focus on crossbreeding and productivity increase of dairy cattle has — besides enhanced milk production — also resulted in high use of agro-chemicals. The use of antibiotics for common cattle diseases, such as udder infection and diarrhoea, is widespread. This contributes to the global threat of anti-microbial resistance…

Kashee MPO to achieve turnover of Rs 200 cr by FY24

Kashee Milk Producer Organization on Monday said it is all set to achieve a turnover of Rs 200 crore by the end of financial year 2023-24, in just two years of operations, largely supported by rise of women milk farmers. This will be a six-fold increase in revenue for the organization that had recorded a…