The trend has been
powered by the liberalization of the Indian economy since 1991 that
introduced trade globalization and economic reforms when India signed
the WTO (World Trade Organization) agreement. These factors have
intensified and raised the milk production and processing capacity of
India as the conglomerates marked their arrival into the dairy
business a few years back. Additionally, several other factors that
have catalyzed commercial dairying incorporate mechanization, falling
numbers of landholders, wide acceptance of high-yielding cross-bred
cows, and easy access to advanced technology.
Dairy farming, as a
sustainable employment provides a primary source of income to the
small and medium scale farmers in India. The dairy sector in India
might double its milk production by 2020 owing to the huge potential
of the export market base in Europe and the western countries. A
successful dairy farmer possesses a good know-how of livestock &
farm management and dairy business. If you’re venturing into your
own dairy business, you must gain knowledge and hands-on experience
in managing dairy animals by visiting neighboring farms,
veterinaries, and seek expert guidance & training programs on
dairy farming. It requires intensive capital investment and resource
deployment which can be attained through government schemes or bank
loans.
For
round the year market availability for milk, the commercial dairy
farms must be established near milk processing plants, cities &
towns, or the areas with decent connectivity to roads and
accessibility to other required resources. Selecting appropriate
cows, say cross-bred Jersey cows that bear a good amount and
high-quality milk and require little economical investment in terms
of feed and overall health management. Such cows are easily receptive
to the modern animal husbandry routines like milking using milk
machine, calf weaning, etc. If you’re seeking opportunities to
start a dairy farm on a commercial scale, you must begin with
fostering 15-20 cross-bred cows. This size is enough to employ two
full-time workers and produce a considerable income, sufficient to
support a middle-class family. You can expand the size of your farm
gradually as you achieve stability in your dairy business. Besides,
you can implement dairy equipment and milk software at your farm
according to the degree of mechanization required and magnitude of
operations. The dairy business, if picked up on carefully with
perseverance, can bear rewarding fruits and a minimum of 20% or more
profitable return on your investments, which is scarce in most of the
other sectors.
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