Gandhinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone and dedicate three new plants of Sabar Dairy in Gujarat on Thursday. This plant is estimated to raise the annual income of cattle rearers in the state by around ₹700 crore annually. The Gujarat Government has taken this step to ensure the welfare of farmers and cattle rearers and increase their income.

Investment of ₹600 cr to set-up a Cheese Plant on 5 acres of land

This plant, spread across five acres of land, will be established with an investment of ₹600 crore. It will help meet the demand of cheese by 2023-24 which is growing at a rate of 15% every year, according to Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF).

Annual income of cattle rearers in Sabarkantha to grow annually by ₹700 Cr

“This new cheese factory will use around 1.2 crore litres of milk annually to generate an additional income of ₹700 crore for cattle rearers. Currently, the cheese market in India is ₹3,000 crore which is likely to go up to ₹6,000 crore in the next five years. Gujarat’s Amul currently holds the top position in India’s cheese market with a 70% market share,” said RS Sodhi, Managing Director at GCMMF.

33 lakh liters of milk per day is processed at Sabar dairy

Operational since last 58 years, this dairy has been instrumental in providing adequate prices to the milk producers and ensuring that they are able to reap benefits of various government schemes. The number of cattle rearers today has increased to 3,85,000 from 2,50,000 during 2001-02. The annual turnover has also skyrocketed to ₹6,803 crore (2001-02: ₹351 crore). Thirty-three lakh litres of milk is processed every day.

Milk production business in Gujarat is worth ₹60,000 crore annually

Currently, 250 lakh litres of milk is being processed by 24 Co-operative Dairies every day. One-fifth of that is being used as liquid. Rest is being used to make milk powder, butter, paneer, chocolate and similar products. Milk’s annual business through co-operative sector is approximately ₹60,000 crore. Demand of cheese has soared five times in the last decade. In the wake of growing demand, farmers will get a better price and eventually raise their overall earnings. Currently there are three cheese plants in Gujarat: Amul fed dairy plant-Bhat, Kheda District Milk Producer Association (Kheda Jillaa Dudh Utpadak Sangh) – Khatraj, and Banas Dairy Plant Deodar. The new plant at Sabar dairy will augment the Cheese production and benefit the state’s economy.

Increasing milk production through Cross-breeding

The state government is undertaking several efforts to increase milk production. Superior quality of cattle breeds are being brought to Gujarat from states like Punjab and the government is assisting cattle rearers with artificial insemination and conception. Dedicated research and development activities are being carried out for this purpose in centres at diaries in Anand, Vadodara, Surat, Mehsana, Bharuch and Banaskantha. Besides this, the state government is also undertaking experiments in consultation with experts from countries like Brazil and Denmark. Around 25 lakh cattle rearers/farmers are benefitting from this activity. A special helpline has been established to ensure on-site help from veterinary doctors.

DeshGujarat