Agriculture is an important part of the economy of India’s Punjab state, with milk being the main product of the livestock sector. Since 1973, Punjab has had a strong history of milk cooperatives at the village level, with membership at around 410,000 producers and 10 milk processing plants. Recent developments in the dairy sector have contributed to Punjab having the highest per capita milk availability of any state in India.
That said, most milk in the state is handled informally (without being processed), with producers directly supplying to consumers and businesses such as restaurants, tea stalls and local retailers. Surplus and deficit cycles throughout the year also result in milk scarcity during deficit seasons, while demand remains constant all year.
Verka, the brand name for the Punjab State Cooperative Milk Producers’ Federation and Milk Union Mohali, sources milk from over 350,000 farmers from some 6,300 village milk producers’ societies. It employs effective testing and quality assurance systems as well as transparency in payment towards milk producers. Yet, as demand increases, Verka needs to increase its intake of quality raw milk, especially during deficit seasons.
Meeting yearlong demand for quality milk
Tetra Pak India and Tetra Pak Food for Development have teamed with customer Verka to establish Dairy Hubs in Punjab State. The project will link Verka with more smallholder farmers in order to meet the processor’s demands for quality raw milk while improving the farmers’ livelihoods.
Tetra Pak supports customers in the development of sustainable local dairy value chains. It does this by supporting customers in procuring high-quality milk from smallholders. The Diary Hub model links smallholder farmers to dairy processors and provides services, technical training, and best practices to the farmers in important areas such as farm management, animal health, hygienic milking practices and nutrition. The model also helps create an effective infrastructure and drives initiatives to improve profitability, animal welfare and hygiene.
The Dairy Hub project in Punjab will start with 2 milk collection centres and 25 reference farms in Mohali to showcase improvements in milk quality and milk production, respectively, with plans to expand to 650 farms over the project’s 28-month duration.
A reliable source of milk and livelihood
In general, Dairy Hub programmes help make milk collection and production more efficient while boosting milk quality. This is achieved through ensuring food safety and quality by introducing standards and control mechanisms, as well as increasing output per cow and unit of land.
Through the Dairy Hub project in Punjab, close cooperation between Verka and Tetra Pak aims to boost milk quality and increase yields at smallholder farms. This will, in turn, increase the overall volume of milk sourced from smallholder farms by Verka and make those farms more profitable.
Access to increased volumes of milk should cover investments in staff, training and infrastructure for milk cooling and transport, keeping milk collection at current levels.
Knowledge sharing and inspiration
"We believe deeply in the Dairy Hub model, not only as a way to increase the availability of safe, nutritious milk, but also due to the social and economic benefits it can bring. There are so many livelihoods which depend on the dairy industry, and so many lives which can be improved by establishing strong relationships between smallholder farms and processing plants. We are therefore very proud to work with Verka on this initiative," said Cassio Simoes, Managing Director, Tetra Pak India.
Plans for the second year of the collaboration include expanding the project to 650 more farmers in the villages of Mohali, Ludhiana and Patiala. The overall scope for Verka includes a total of 3,000 farms – 2,900 of which are smallholders – over 28 months.
After the 28-month project is complete, there is hope that the Dairy Hubs not only continue to operate but also share knowledge and competence throughout India’s dairy industry. Successful outcomes for this project can serve as inspiration to spread the Dairy Hub model to more villages in Punjab and beyond.
