With the Covid-19 pandemic situation in the country reaching a crucial juncture, sale of almost all milk products like curds, cream and cheese has dropped by 90 per cent and that of luxury items like paneer, ghee and ice cream has ceased completely. In fact, the milk and milk products industry may not have a smooth run in about a week’s time though it falls under essential services.
While manufacturing and sale in many of the sectors in India has come to a standstill, the food processing companies, especially milk and milk products industries, which are still running, are facing several challenges. This is the scenario in the country though the government has made arrangements to make milk and milk products available 24x7 under essential services,
Speaking to FnB News on Tuesday, Ram Kutwal, MD, Kutwal Foods Pvt. Ltd, Pune, listed out few of the challenges faced by the milk and milk products sector: “Sale of skimmed milk powder (SMP) has decreased a lot due to the outbreak of Corona virus and hence people are dependent on fresh milk. The challenge here is that farmers and cowherds are forced to sell fresh milk at a lower cost price than before the declaration of this global pandemic.”
Kutwal stated, “The milk and milk products sector is facing a serious challenge as sale of almost all byproducts like curds, cream and cheese has reduced by 90 per cent and that of luxury items like paneer, ghee and ice cream has completely stopped.”
He pointed out, “Another issue we are facing is that a few villages and small towns have sealed off their borders completely preventing the people from entering or leaving, hence our labourers who reside in those areas are unable to come to work eventhough we are an essential service centre and must remain open but this is the reason for so many shops being shut.”
Summing up, he rued, “Due to shortage of raw materials, packing materials and non-availability of spare parts on account of non-essential factories being shut, the dairy industry will be able to function smoothly only for about 8 to 10 more days.”