KMF enters Delhi-NCR, as Siddaramaiah launches Nandini brand milk products in national capital

A file photo of a Nandini milk parlour in Bengaluru.
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Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday launched the Karnataka Milk Federation’s (KMF) Nandini brand milk products for the Delhi-NCR market. The rates of the products have been fixed marginally lower than that of competitors such as Mother Dairy and Amul in the national capital.

After launching the products, the Chief Minister said Karnataka ranks second in milk production in the country after Gujarat. “We have surplus milk in the State. The KMF along with Mandya Milk Union will market the surplus milk of around four lakh litres per day in Delhi-NCR,” Mr. Siddaramaiah said.

Acknowledging the challenges of transporting milk over 2,500 km, which takes 50-54 hours, the Chief Minister said, “There are a total of 16 milk unions in the State and nearly one crore litres of milk is produced in Karnataka. While 2.5 lakh litres of milk is supplied daily to Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra each, we have planned to supply 2.5 lakh litres of milk to New Delhi in the initial stage. Our target is to increase this supply to five lakh litres within six months.”

He said the incentive for milk producers in Karnataka was increased to ₹5 per litre after he took over as Chief Minister. “This is the highest incentive paid to milk producers so far. During former Chief Minister B.S Yediyurappa’s tenure, the incentive was ₹2, then it became ₹3. Our government is spending ₹5 crore every day on the incentives,” he said.

Recalling his tenure as Animal Husbandry Minister and KMF chairman in the past, the Chief Minister said his efforts focussed on protecting milk producers from exploitation. “We formed milk producers’ associations to ensure farmers got fair prices and a permanent market for their produce,” he said.

The KMF will retail four cow milk variants, curd, and buttermilk from Friday. While cow milk will be sold at ₹56 per litre, full cream milk at ₹67 per litre, standardised milk at ₹61 per litre, toned milk at ₹55 per litre, and curd at ₹74 per kg.

KMF chairman L.B.P. Bheema Naik said that milk quality would be maintained during transit. The federation has partnered with 40 dealers in the Delhi-NCR region to facilitate sales, he said.