Karnataka milk price hike justified by rising production costs, says D.K. Suresh
The Bengaluru Milk Union president stated that the price increase was necessary to prevent dairy farmers from abandoning the profession.
Bengaluru Milk Union Ltd. president D.K. Suresh defended the recent price hike for milk and curd by the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) on Friday. Speaking to The Hindu, Suresh said that without the hike, there were fears that dairy farmers would give up farming due to meagre earnings.
Suresh noted that the cost of producing milk has increased by at least 40 per cent. He cited rising costs for furnace oil, which rose by 40 per cent, commercial diesel at ₹115 a litre, and commercial gas cylinders at ₹600. Other rising costs include electricity, refrigeration, and plastic crates, which increased from ₹250 to ₹360.
The president stated that the cost of cattle feed has also risen, with oil cake increasing by up to 80 per cent. The price of maize per tonne rose from ₹22,000 to ₹35,000, while soya cake increased from ₹35,000 to ₹64,000 a tonne. He added that there is a severe shortage of green fodder.
Despite milk prices increasing by ₹8 to ₹12 per litre and curd by ₹14 a kg, Suresh said Karnataka's milk prices remain lower than in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh. Following the revision, farmers receive a procurement price of ₹42 per litre plus a ₹5 per litre government incentive.
Suresh said the KMF has seen milk procurement increase by about 10 lakh litres, with an average daily procurement of 1.16 crore litres. He also mentioned that a slight downward revision in curd prices is expected after Deepavali following a meeting with milk union presidents across the state.