How Amul’s entry into South India is causing a churn in the cooperative industry
State milk cooperatives have fostered a no-competition spirit among each other. Now, the Gujarat-based milk procurer has caused a stir as it enters the South In the 1980s and the 1990s, the best suitor to the rich, brown Robusta from the blue Nilgiris was the creamy-complexioned Aavin from Tamil Nadu’s plains. In neighbouring Karnataka and…
In Gujarat’s dairy world, BJP gets the cream of the crop
Seventeen years ago, an anguished Dr Verghese Kurien, pre-empting his removal, had stepped down as founder-chairman of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) — the umbrella body of dairy co-operatives based in Anand that owns the iconic Amul brand. Announcing his resignation on March 6, 2006, at the Indian Institute of Rural Management (IRMA), another institution he…
The good cooperative
Companies are investor-owned entities that exist primarily to maximize their return on capital. This is reflected in the value of their shares, whether traded on an exchange or not. The investor-owner ultimately seeks capital appreciation and the highest possible price for the shares he wishes to sell or pledge to raise further funds. Cooperatives, on…