Cost of milk production of crossbred cows in Tamil Nadu: An economic analysis

A study was carried out to estimate the cost of production of milk in crossbred cows farms of Tamil Nadu. The data was collected from 150 dairy farmers of Salem district. Conventional analysis in the form of percentages and averages were used to analyse the data. The results revealed that among the different categories of farmers the cost of production per litre of milk was the lowest in small farmers’ category (Rs.8.73) and was the highest in large farmers’ category (Rs.9.86). Among the components of total return from rearing crossbred cows, sale of milk was the significant factor with its contribution ranging from 95 to 98 per cent with the overall figure of 97.69 per cent. The return from sale of calves formed 1.12 cent of the total returns. The return from sale of manure and gunny bags contributed less significantly to the total returns.