Milk price hike: many cut consumption or switch to cheaper brands

Mother Dairy, earlier this week, hiked the milk prices of its brands by Rs 2 per litre in Delhi-NCR. The price hike is applicable in Delhi-NCR as well as other markets, the company said. Amul also increased its milk rates by Rs 2 per litre across all its brands.

A survey conducted, LocalCircles, after the milk price hike stated that 4 in 10 Indian households are feeling the pinch of milk price hike. The consumers who took part in the survey said 60% are “paying higher prices and buying same quantity and brand”.

About 14% stated that they “have switched to a low-cost brand or local supply source”, 20% stated that they “have reduced the quantity that we purchase”, and 3% stated that they “have stopped buying milk”.

\With the latest hike, the revised milk prices for Amul variants such as 500 ml Amul buffalo milk, 500 ml Amul Gold milk, and 500 ml Amul Shakti milk stand at Rs 36, Rs 33, and Rs 30, respectively.

On the other hand, in Delhi-NCR, Mother Dairy full cream milk is available now at Rs 68 per litre. Toned and double-toned milk will be priced at Rs 56 and Rs 50 per litre, respectively, and Buffalo and cow milk prices have been increased to Rs 72 and Rs 58 per litre, respectively. Token milk will be sold at Rs 54 per litre.

The survey received over 13,000 responses from household consumers in over 309 districts of the country. Around 62% of respondents were men while 38% of respondents were women. About 42% of respondents were from tier 1, 25% from tier 2 and 33% of respondents were from tier 3, 4, and rural districts. Milk price hike

Jayen Mehta, MD of GCMMF, which markets a range of products under the 'Amul' brand, said that the hike is to compensate farmers for the increased cost of production and due to rise in overall cost of operation and production of milk. Mother Dairy said: "The surge in farm prices is only being partially passed on to the consumers, with an effective revision of 3-4%, thereby securing the interests of both the milk producers and the consumers."

Mother Dairy in its statement said: "The surge in farm prices is only being partially passed on to the consumers, with an effective revision of 3-4 per cent, thereby securing the interests of both the milk producers and the consumers."

The last time both Amul and Mother Dairy increased the price of milk was in February 2023. However, Mother Dairy increased milk prices by INR 10 per liter between March and December 2022 while Amul hiked its prices thrice in 2022.

"The increase of Rs 2 per litre translates to the range of 3-4 per cent increase in MRP, which is much lower than the average food inflation. It is worthwhile to note that since February 2023, Amul has made no increase in prices of fresh pouch milk in major markets," GCMMF said in a statement.