New Delhi. Amul is preparing to send its dairy products to high standard markets like Israel. Company MD Jayen Mehta has said that several product categories have already been selected and the final combination is being prepared as per the needs of Israel. Mehta said that exports can be started as soon as the regulatory conditions are fulfilled. Israel is one of those countries in the world where very strict standards are applied on dairy products. In such a situation, Amul starting exports there is being considered a big moment for the Indian dairy sector. Amul already ships many of its products to America, Australia, Singapore and GCC countries and now its global footprint can further increase with Israel.
This initiative of Amul is coming at a time when the demand for food security and reliable dairy supply is continuously increasing in many countries. The company claims that India’s milk supply chain is more stable and traceable compared to other countries, making it easier to maintain quality. Amul is one of the most trusted brands in the Indian dairy market. There is decades of hard work behind this trust. Let us take a look at the wonderful journey of Amul.
How did Amul start?
The story of Amul begins in Anand district of Gujarat in the 1940s. At that time, local contractors used to buy milk from farmers and gave very low prices. The situation was so bad that farmers were not able to earn properly despite their hard work. During this period, farmers approached Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Tribhuvandas Patel with complaints.
First big step in 1946
On the advice of Sardar Patel, the foundation of Anand Dairy Cooperative was laid in 1946. This was the first such attempt in India where the farmer himself was the owner of the milk and he decided the price. Tribhuvandas Patel became its first chairman and started the expansion of the organization.
1950: Entry of Verghese Kurien
In 1950, a young engineer reached Anand for training. His name was Verghese Kurien. Initially he did not want to stay here, but seeing the commitment of the farmers, he decided to stay here permanently. Kurien noticed that there were almost no facilities to preserve milk for long periods of time and to process it on a large scale. This was the empty space from where India’s dairy revolution began.
1964: Birth of Operation Flood
Kurien developed technologies for milk cooling, processing and large-scale supply chain. On their strength, India launched Operation Flood in 1964, which is considered to be the world’s largest dairy development program. Because of this one project, India became the world’s largest milk producing country from a country with severe milk shortage.
Original formula of Amul model
Amul model runs in three levels
- First level village society where every farmer is a member
- Second level district union which handles processing and production
- The third level is the state federation that operates the marketing and brand Amul.
This model meant
- milk farmer’s
- factory farmer
- Profit also goes to the same farmer
It was completely different from any dairy brand in the world.
1970–1990: Amul’s rapid expansion
In these decades, Amul launched milk powder, cheese, butter, flavored milk, and later even ice cream. Starting from Anand, the cooperative expanded to almost every district of Gujarat. Farmers started running their own dairies directly and the recognition of Amul brand kept increasing in the cities.
After 2000: Amul’s global journey
- Supply starts in GCC countries
- Amul products available in Indian and local stores in America
- Exports increased continuously in Australia and Singapore
- Now preparing to enter a high regulatory market like Israel
Today, Amul directly contributes to the earnings of approximately 40 lakh farmers and processes more than 300 lakh liters of milk daily.
Amul works in partnership with Superior Dairy in the US.
Why is Amul considered the world’s most successful cooperative?
- Farmers are both owners and suppliers
- no middleman
- Company has complete control of quality
- Supply chain is completely tracked by tech system
- Every step from village to collection automated
This is the reason why Amul is able to sell its products in America, Singapore and the Middle East and now it is also going to enter a country with a strict category like Israel.
