Milk Sale Pattern and Constraints in Dairy Farming in Sub-mountainous Region of Punjab

Dairy farming has occupied an important place in the development of the rural household's economy. It has become employment generation and income earning potentiality throughout the year. Keeping this view, the present study was undertaken to examine the mechanism followed by the farmers for marketing of milk produced and to study various production and marketing related constraints faced by dairy farmers in sub-mountainous region of the Punjab state. The results of the study revealed that mostly farmers sold the milk produced directly to the milk vendors due to ease in selling from home as compared to selling through co-operative milk societies and directly to consumers. The price realized by selling buffalo milk to co-operative milk societies was higher while in the case of cow milk, it was direct selling to consumers which fetched higher price to the dairy farmers due to less knowledge about the fat content of milk purchased by the consumers. Major problems encountered by dairy farmers included; low productivity in case of local cows and buffaloes, repeat breeding in buffaloes, high cost of feed/fodder, lack of availability of green fodder throughout the year, lack of organized milk marketing facilities, low price of the milk sold and problem of disposal of cow male calves and old/disabled cattle. The study emphasized on the establishment of new milk marketing societies, supply of high yielding milch animals at subsidized rates and strengthening of veterinary facilities for increasing the income of the farmers from dairy farming in the sub-mountainous region of the state.