Beliefs in Dairy Business
Posted 05-28-2009 at 06:59 PM by cnsant
Further to my interactions with scores of people thinking of entering Dairy business all across (especially India) the country it was quite evident that the general beliefs are :-
1. Dairy Farming is an easy business.
This is because Dairy farming is done by a farmer, who in most cases is not much learned & has been doing this business for quite a lot of years & is making money. However the main constraint in his Dairy farming is that he has been following the traditional methods in everything viz. Feeding & management (which comprises more than 80% of the farming costs) by virtue of which he is not in profits but just making both ends meet along with little help from his agricultural income.
This business is easy provided you are well aware of the basics & are able to apply scientific methods which can help improve the overall profitability. At the same time it must be understood that Dairy has to be closely observed day in & day out as there is no holiday in dairy farming.
2. Animal gives milk throughout the year.
The animal gives milk only after it gives a calf (offspring) & not otherwise. On an average a cow gives milk for 270-300 days whereas the buffalo gives for 240-270 days. This period (called Lactation) is followed by a Dry period (during which it does not give milk but just EATS) is called as Intercalving period after which she will give the next calf. In India the average Intercalving period in cows is 450 around days & in buffaloes its 500 days or more also.
The main goal in successful Dairying will be to REDUCE this DRY period which eats into the profits & should be given maximum importance.
3. Dairy Business breaks even in the first year.
As in all businesses Dairy business does not break even in first year. The
main costs in dairy farming are ;-
A. Capital cost ; For purchase of animals, construction of Shed & purchase of
machinery, cans etc. This cost occurs only once & is depreciable over a
Period of time totally.
B. Administrative Costs : includes appointment of a Farm manager, Supervisor, skilled & unskilled labours depending upon the requirements as well as the size of the farm. This is a fixed cost for a certain period.
C. Recurring Cost : includes the Feeding & Management along with Vaccination, Insurance, treatment , AI & other miscellaneous costs. This is required daily & is liable to fluctuate at all times. It will be essential to control these costs which will have a direct bearing on the production (of milk) as well as Reproduction (birth of next calf). At the same time balancing of feed will also determine the REDUCTION of the Intercalving period which has a bearing on total profitability.
4. Dairy business can be done by being dependent on labours.
This is possible provided the owner is aware of all the intricacies as well as the loop holes in Dairying. It is a well known fact that any labour is not at all concerned with Profitability but (his) net Payments at the end of the month. As such he is likely to use his own parameters for optimizing the profitability of the farm. Thus it will be extremely imperative for the owner to know & understand all the details of Dairy farming before starting the same. This will enable him to guide his labours towards the right path & help in minimizing the losses. A small expense of extra Re. 1 per animal per day can result into a loss of Rs. 130 per day in a farm of 100 cows (This farm; along with 100 cows will also have calves which will also account for Feeding expense).
5. Dairy Business can be learned from the Net & by getting hold of Project report.
Most of the Dairy farmers in India do not use the NET nor do they use computers. They do not have the records of the animals kept by them & as such only a little information is available on the Net .
Dairy Farming ( as a business ; keeping large number of animals & following Scientific methods has just started a few years ago but is picking up very fast due to its several advantages viz.
a. Steady business with steady income unaffected by Recession.
b. Milk can be sold directly from the farm (No Marketing setup needed)
c. No brokers ; price is already declared by the Government.
d. Selling rate of milk has been consistently increasing over a period of time.
e. Consumption accepted by all religions, caste & creed.
However most of the information available on the Net is related to Foreign countries which sadly cannot be applied to the Indian conditions as we differ from them in many ways viz. seasons, soil structure, temperature, greens ( quality & availability), number of animals & their genetic potential etc.
At the same time it must be noted that just getting the Project report will be insufficient as Practical knowledge is equally necessary to start this business. This can be possible only after visiting several farms; staying on those for certain time which will be helpful in determining the mental as well as the physical capacity of the person venturing into this Dairying business.
It will be ideal to visit the farms along with an expert (who knows about Dairy farming in detail) so as to understand the correct & incorrect methods being followed in the dairy farm which being visited. This is important as the person newly entering into Dairying will have a clean slate of mind & may Repeat all the mistakes committed by the dairy farmer (A person will NOT admit his mistakes openly). This can safely be avoided by going along with an Expert.
6. All the information is Free.
The Net may be wonderful tool for getting hold of basic information initially but it must be noted that there is No free lunch in the world. It will be unwise to expect people to teach you their trade secrets for nothing. People will give you the information but it will be ideal to determine the feasibility & viability of the same. This can be very easily done with asking him questions on “How, What, Where, When & Why”. If all the answers are more than satisfactory then only you should proceed & follow the advice of the said person.
Dr.Chandrkiran N.Sant
(Dairy Management Advisor)
1. Dairy Farming is an easy business.
This is because Dairy farming is done by a farmer, who in most cases is not much learned & has been doing this business for quite a lot of years & is making money. However the main constraint in his Dairy farming is that he has been following the traditional methods in everything viz. Feeding & management (which comprises more than 80% of the farming costs) by virtue of which he is not in profits but just making both ends meet along with little help from his agricultural income.
This business is easy provided you are well aware of the basics & are able to apply scientific methods which can help improve the overall profitability. At the same time it must be understood that Dairy has to be closely observed day in & day out as there is no holiday in dairy farming.
2. Animal gives milk throughout the year.
The animal gives milk only after it gives a calf (offspring) & not otherwise. On an average a cow gives milk for 270-300 days whereas the buffalo gives for 240-270 days. This period (called Lactation) is followed by a Dry period (during which it does not give milk but just EATS) is called as Intercalving period after which she will give the next calf. In India the average Intercalving period in cows is 450 around days & in buffaloes its 500 days or more also.
The main goal in successful Dairying will be to REDUCE this DRY period which eats into the profits & should be given maximum importance.
3. Dairy Business breaks even in the first year.
As in all businesses Dairy business does not break even in first year. The
main costs in dairy farming are ;-
A. Capital cost ; For purchase of animals, construction of Shed & purchase of
machinery, cans etc. This cost occurs only once & is depreciable over a
Period of time totally.
B. Administrative Costs : includes appointment of a Farm manager, Supervisor, skilled & unskilled labours depending upon the requirements as well as the size of the farm. This is a fixed cost for a certain period.
C. Recurring Cost : includes the Feeding & Management along with Vaccination, Insurance, treatment , AI & other miscellaneous costs. This is required daily & is liable to fluctuate at all times. It will be essential to control these costs which will have a direct bearing on the production (of milk) as well as Reproduction (birth of next calf). At the same time balancing of feed will also determine the REDUCTION of the Intercalving period which has a bearing on total profitability.
4. Dairy business can be done by being dependent on labours.
This is possible provided the owner is aware of all the intricacies as well as the loop holes in Dairying. It is a well known fact that any labour is not at all concerned with Profitability but (his) net Payments at the end of the month. As such he is likely to use his own parameters for optimizing the profitability of the farm. Thus it will be extremely imperative for the owner to know & understand all the details of Dairy farming before starting the same. This will enable him to guide his labours towards the right path & help in minimizing the losses. A small expense of extra Re. 1 per animal per day can result into a loss of Rs. 130 per day in a farm of 100 cows (This farm; along with 100 cows will also have calves which will also account for Feeding expense).
5. Dairy Business can be learned from the Net & by getting hold of Project report.
Most of the Dairy farmers in India do not use the NET nor do they use computers. They do not have the records of the animals kept by them & as such only a little information is available on the Net .
Dairy Farming ( as a business ; keeping large number of animals & following Scientific methods has just started a few years ago but is picking up very fast due to its several advantages viz.
a. Steady business with steady income unaffected by Recession.
b. Milk can be sold directly from the farm (No Marketing setup needed)
c. No brokers ; price is already declared by the Government.
d. Selling rate of milk has been consistently increasing over a period of time.
e. Consumption accepted by all religions, caste & creed.
However most of the information available on the Net is related to Foreign countries which sadly cannot be applied to the Indian conditions as we differ from them in many ways viz. seasons, soil structure, temperature, greens ( quality & availability), number of animals & their genetic potential etc.
At the same time it must be noted that just getting the Project report will be insufficient as Practical knowledge is equally necessary to start this business. This can be possible only after visiting several farms; staying on those for certain time which will be helpful in determining the mental as well as the physical capacity of the person venturing into this Dairying business.
It will be ideal to visit the farms along with an expert (who knows about Dairy farming in detail) so as to understand the correct & incorrect methods being followed in the dairy farm which being visited. This is important as the person newly entering into Dairying will have a clean slate of mind & may Repeat all the mistakes committed by the dairy farmer (A person will NOT admit his mistakes openly). This can safely be avoided by going along with an Expert.
6. All the information is Free.
The Net may be wonderful tool for getting hold of basic information initially but it must be noted that there is No free lunch in the world. It will be unwise to expect people to teach you their trade secrets for nothing. People will give you the information but it will be ideal to determine the feasibility & viability of the same. This can be very easily done with asking him questions on “How, What, Where, When & Why”. If all the answers are more than satisfactory then only you should proceed & follow the advice of the said person.
Dr.Chandrkiran N.Sant
(Dairy Management Advisor)
Total Comments 11
Comments
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I totally satisfied with the given suggestions to adopt the dairy farming as a business. I would like to know, which type of help is given by government to start the same?Posted 06-05-2009 at 04:20 PM by harsh p patel
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dairy industry is growing in india with a rate of around 15 % per year. But still this business havent got serious response as a form of industry . people are still practising the conventional, less productive methods of dairy business and avoiding usage of mordern produtive methods. Many farmers are considering it as just a side income source.
Animesh Basu
B.tech Agriculture Engineer
Bhilai. ChhattisgarhPosted 06-06-2009 at 09:27 PM by rohan_basu
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Government help for dairy business
government is providing easy loans on agri business with minimal interest plans . best is if people avail loan from NABARD. it is the best banking institute for providing agri loansPosted 06-06-2009 at 09:31 PM by rohan_basu
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Pls. give the NABARD bank details also scheme details and required docements.Posted 06-10-2009 at 09:29 PM by bvmane
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Hi for every one.
NABARD is not providing loans for start up Dairy business as of now. If you have an operational small dairy, they will evaluate for providing loans conditionally. All nationalized banks provide loans at 8 to 10% interest.
Thanks
Srini
SDRLPosted 06-11-2009 at 12:23 PM by srinivas_cts
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Pls. give the NABARD bank details also scheme details and required docements for dairy loan /cattle farming LoanPosted 06-11-2009 at 03:42 PM by chandraprakashshrm
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I would like to know, which type of help is given by government to start the Dairy farming ?Posted 06-11-2009 at 03:44 PM by chandraprakashshrm
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Hello,
“Greetings from Dr.C.N.Sant’’
The (only) help from the Government is in form of subsidy which amounts to about 25 % at the minimum depending upon the state which you are located in.
However one word of caution; please do not take the subsidy into calculation while going into Dairy farming as business but consider that as an additional Income.
Majority of the Banks (Nationalized as well as Private) are providing Loans for Dairy farming provided you have Land to mortgage & a minimum 15% as the margin money.
NABARD does not give loans directly it refinances the bank giving the loan.
One Request : If anyone needs detailed information ( of anything in dairy farming) then please do call so as to discuss.
With regards,
Dr.Chandrakiran N.Sant
(Dairy Advisor)Posted 06-11-2009 at 11:24 PM by cnsant
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NOTE FOR EVERYONE:-
NABARD is not providing loans for dairy farms as of now. NABARD is providig loan for indeginous milk product processing on attractive 50% interest subsidy. Also many commercial banks (because of higher % of NPAs) view dairy projects as negative projects.
Highest rate of Default/NPA is in cases where initially too much money was allocated for fancy construction, machienary, milking parlours, cubicles, contonuous feed plant etc and lesser towards livestock (which actually is productive investment). Also big projects generally fail because they do not plan expansion in phases for e.g. initially starting with 30 animals then adding 30 more after6 months and so on to reach 200 animals in 5 years. An old saying in the industry is that one should not jump into dairying but grow in it.Posted 08-11-2009 at 10:02 AM by prateekvaish
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Dear Sir,
I got 15 acers of land which got good water felicity, I want start Commercial Dairy Farm as a registered company and get the bank loan first start with 20 (buffers and cow) then go up to 75.
Please let me know how to go about it and I don’t know where to start.
Best regards,
SriniPosted 08-17-2009 at 10:43 AM by ks9072
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I would like to know, which type of help is given by government to start the Dairy farmingPosted 09-12-2009 at 12:59 PM by chandra4usekhar
