More pain ahead! Milk and dairy products prices set to pinch you harder

There does not seem any respite to the common man as apart from rising vegetable prices due to unseasonal rains and hailstorms, the prices of milk and milk products, too, are going to pinch harder. As per a Reuters report, milk prices have already jumped more than 15 per cent to Rs 56 a litre over the past year – the fastest rise in a decade

So, why milk prices are rising unabatedly

Major factors that have fuelled a steep rise in milk prices are lumpy skin disease affecting cattle, changing weather (approaching summers), and expensive fodder. Lumpy skin disease, according to the European Food Safety Authority, is a viral disease that affects cattle. It is transmitted by blood-feeding insects, such as certain species of flies and mosquitoes, or ticks. As many as 67,000 cattle had died since the outbreak of the disease from July 2022 to September 2022, according to a PTI report.

"Milk prices are also likely to remain firm going into the summer season due to tight demand-supply balance and fodder cost pressures. The rising uncertainty in international financial markets and imported inflation pressures need to be monitored closely,” Reserve Bank of India Governor, Shaktikanta Das said in the bi-monthly MPC meeting.  

Hence, milk products will get pricey too

Also Read: Amul milk price hiked by Rs 2 per litre from today: Here's how much Amul Taaza, Amul Gold, Amul Cow Milk will now cost 

As the price of milk is expected to rise, it is obvious that milk products such as ghee, butter, and cheese will also shoot up. As per Reuters, a 39 per cent increase in dairy product exports in 2022, followed by lower milk supplies, has already reduced butter and skimmed milk powder (SMP) inventories in India, even as rising incomes boost demand for protein-rich dairy products, which are a key source of calcium, vitamins, and protein for a large vegetarian population. 

How summers will affect supply

Dairy cows' milk production reduces with heat stress and as the production will reduce it is likely that milk products like ghee, butter, cheese etc will get costlier. 

Devendra Shah, chairman of Parag Milk Foods in Maharashtra state, told Reuters there will be further rises in milk prices during summer.

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