You’ve Got Milk

For a nation which is the largest producer and consumer of milk and milk products, milk is both essential and ubiquitous – whether it be for the large number of dairy farmers who practice it as a trade for their livelihood or for the ordinary folk who consume it. Even the gods seem to fancy it thanks to the large number of milk abhishekams which happen across the country.

In such a context it would be an understatement to press upon the vitality of this industry, but at the same time it is obvious that inefficiencies which plague many traditional sectors haven’t spared dairy too.

Dairy Network Enterprises (DNE), part of the Network Enterprises Fund, focuses exclusively on the dairy industry to address some of the inefficiencies by using a mix of technology and local engagement.

One of its first projects is to setup a RFID technology backed system for the KGFS cattle insurance product. This process would involve tagging the animal with an RFID tag and storing data in a database which would have basic information regarding the possible cattle value, owner details, location, age, lactation information etc. This information would then be relayed to the KGFS CMS server through the Animal records software. The KGFS CMS would append the owner details and eventually this information would go to the Insurance server to issue the policy, reversing the flow of information thereafter.

All this would happen in real-time, so that the policy document is given to the cattle owner on the spot. The use of technology would enable settlement of claims at express speed as well.

RFID Tags

The challenge that DNE faces here is in devising a low-cost feasible and functional technology which integrates across the different stages of information flow and enables seamless interaction between multiple hardware and software platforms. A challenge it hopes to pilot test within 2 weeks.

Another project which it is working on is the Milk Productivity Enterprise in a box (MPEIB). This project aims to promote a preventive mode of Dairy Animal Healthcare amongst the dairy farmers rather than the curative mode. The setup would enable doorstep access to the necessary resources needed by the dairy farmers to follow better dairy animal management practices, thereby helping to bring down the transaction costs and improving net returns from the dairy business.

For a start, DNE has tied up with a local entrepreneur, Dr. Selvaganapathy in Thanjavur, to provide veterinary support to the farmers in the form of preventive services like periodic check-ups, vaccinations, etc. At the back-end, DNE has linked the entrepreneur with various input suppliers like drug vendors, field suppliers, Government labs and universities, besides providing training. DNE has also localized the availability of such services and products by training local women from villages to be a point of contact for the dairy farmers for every query of theirs – thus negating the need for them to travel long distances in search of getting them sorted out.

Field Team in Thanjavur with the entrepreneur and trainer

DNE intends to eventually roll out a sort of “Annual Maintenance Contract” product, and templatize the entire delivery model of the MPEIB so that it can be replicated in a new area with a new entrepreneur – paving way for making equity investments in such enterprises.

Avishek Gupta is looking after the DNE operations with support from Shikha Thaman.

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