Lockdown impact: Maharashtra’s Gokul dairy sees sharp fall in sales

With a daily milk procurement of around 12 lakh liters per day, Gokul’s procurement is across the districts of Kolhapur, Sangli and some parts of Karnataka. The union also has strong retail presence in the cities of Kolhapur, Pune, Mumbai Sangli among other areas.

“In Kolhapur district, many small distributors and sellers have decided to stop selling as they are worried about the spread of the coronavirus pandemic,” Ravindra Apte, chairman of the Union said.

The Kolhapur District Cooperative Milk Producers Union – the dairy that retails dairy products under the brand Gokul – has reported a sharp drop in sales of liquid milk, owing to the ongoing lockdown. Ravindra Apte, chairman of the Union told The Indian Express that sales have dipped by 3-3.15 lakh litres per day post the curfew-like situation.

With a daily milk procurement of around 12 lakh liters per day, Gokul’s procurement is across the districts of Kolhapur, Sangli and some parts of Karnataka. The union also has strong retail presence in the cities of Kolhapur, Pune, Mumbai Sangli among other areas.

Apte said the closure of tea stalls, hotels and sweetmarts were where sales have largely dipped. “In Kolhapur district, many small distributors and sellers have decided to stop selling as they are worried about the spread of the coronavirus pandemic,” he added.

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In rural Kolhapur, villagers have resorted to blocking the entry and exit point of villages which has also hindered the distribution of milk. Procurement, Apte said, was going on as usual but the dip in sales have put challenges before the union. “We have started converting around 3-3.15 lakh liters of milk into skimmed milk powder (SMP) daily,” he said. Other than Gokul, dairies like Chitale in Sangli and the Rajarambapu Cooperative Milk Producer Union of Islampur are also using machinery at Gokul’s processing plant to convert their excess milk into SMP.

Apte said Gokul has not reduced the procurement price of milk for their producers. “We are still paying the dairy farmers at the rate of Rs 27 per litre for milk with 3.5 per cent fat and 8.5 per cent Solid Not Fat (SNF),” he said. A decision, however, could be taken by the board after the lockdown is lifted.

Parthasarathi Biswas

Partha Sarathi Biwas is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express with 10+ years of experience in reporting on Agriculture, Commodities and Developmental issues. He has been with The Indian Express since 2011 and earlier worked with DNA. Partha's report about Farmers Producer Companies (FPC) as well long pieces on various agricultural issues have been cited by various academic publications including those published by the Government of India. He is often invited as a visiting faculty to various schools of journalism to talk about development journalism and rural reporting. In his spare time Partha trains for marathons and has participated in multiple marathons and half marathons. ... Read More

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