Milk and the man

For once the Amul advertisement has got it wrong—their latest offering feting the founder of India’s White revolution on his 90th birthday features a cow and calf looking up at India’s most popular milkman. That Dr Kurien pioneered the use of buffalo milk seems to have been overlooked by the intrepid ad makers. The rest of the advertisement, however, is bang on target. A visit to the Amul dairy in Anand evokes a sense of admiration for the people behind the movement and pride that it should have started in India. The rather overpowering smell of milk is offset by the awe-inspiring milk silos and squeaky-clean equipment.

What makes the Amul story so attractive is that it starts with research and ends with successful application and implementation. Apparently, Kurien had been told that the high fat content in buffalo milk made it impossible to convert it to milk powder. After several failed attempts he managed to make the first batch of buffalo milk powder, which he reportedly emptied on his happy assistant’s head. Every step and strategy in the Amul story is worth studying for anyone involved in social science, basic science and management. The co-operative movement gave direction to random production and introduced quality assurance ensuring safety. It automatically eliminated wastage since the excess produce was converted into products with a longer shelf life. The supplier gained from being paid for the raw material and the consumer gained from a choice of products. Operation Flood then spilled over from Gujarat to become the largest supplier of milk and milk products to the huge market in Mumbai. Within a short space of time it became the ‘Taste of India.’

The ultimate test for any business model is that it should be viable wherever replicated. The co-operative movement started in Anand has been successfully implemented in several states of India. The White revolution, unlike the Green revolution, has stood the test of time in that milk and milk products do not have to be imported. Bridging the urban-rural gap with a customer-supplier relationship and making it economically viable for both is tailor-made for our country.

The success story even inspired Shyam Benegal to make the award-winning film aptly called ‘Manthan.’ And why not, when the protagonist is a winner surrounded by beautiful women wearing lovely baandhini printed odhnis in an otherwise drab landscape! A short ad-film on Amul plays the signature song from the movie accompanied by a concise testimonial that sums up years of struggle, hard work, success and empowerment.  The visuals have recently been updated, and include a woman at a computer terminal and girls clicking pictures on their mobile phones. Clearly, the Anand Milk Producers Union Ltd has come a long way-- perhaps the way that every venture should go. May you live longer, Dr Kurien!