BL Agro is undoubtedly one of India’s foremost FMCG companies, and it is now foraying into the dairy segment in partnership with the Ministry of Animal Husbandry and Dairy and is going to invest Rs. 1,000 crores by the end of the year 2025.
According to Ashish Khandelwal, Managing Director, BL Agro, the company has already acquired 109 acres of land in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, and Amreli, Gujarat, to open farms for cow breeding. “We are planning to venture into animal husbandry. We will be getting the best of the Brazilian cows to India as they are known for the best products, and then eventually, we will introduce dairy products like milk and cheese into the market,” he added.
The company is planning to sign an MoU soon with one of Brazil’s best companies, which is into embryo development, animal cloning, and animal feed supplements, to get the same technology for embryo development and to produce animal feed supplements in India.
“The Brazilian cow usually produces 40 litres of milk per day, and the best among the lot produces 60 to 65 litres per day, viz-a-viz. Indian cows produce usually 6 to 7 litres of milk on a daily basis. The climatic conditions of India and Brazil are more or less the same, with minor fluctuations. Therefore, cow products can easily be replicated in India as well,” he explained.
“We aim to develop 7,200 cows during the first year of operations. It will take us at least 2 years to venture into the dairy segment after that,” he added.
The company made an announcement when the demand-supply gap was observed in the dairy sector, primarily due to increased consumption of nutritious, safe, and hygienic milk and milk products post-pandemic.
Recently, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said in a press conference that the country’s milk production remained stagnant in the 2022–23 fiscal year due to lumpy skin disease in cattle, while the domestic demand grew by 8–10 per cent in the same period because of a rebound in post-pandemic demand.
Apart from this, milk prices have seen a significant uptick in the last six months and will continue to increase due to a shortage heading into the peak demand season.
BL Agro clocked Rs. 3,800 crores in revenue last fiscal and is eyeing to close this fiscal at an estimated revenue of Rs. 6,000 crores. “By 2026-2027, we expect to have a turnover of Rs. 10,000 crores for our mustard oil brand, Bail Kolhu, and our staples brand, Nourish,” Khandelwal said. The company, which has a production capacity of 900 metric tonnes per day, currently offers 80 SKUs under the brands Bail Kolhu and Nourish.