A milky spread: Amul eyes south India expansion

Amul, the flagship company which drove the White Revolution, is planning to expand to the five southern states where local farmers' cooperative such as Nandini, Aavin and Milma rule the market. "We started with the west, then went to the north, and east... Somehow we had not gone to the south," the managing director of Gujarat Coorperative Milk Marketing Federation which sells its produce under Amul, R S Sodhi, told Mint.

The company plans to set up its central operations in Andhra Pradesh which is also India's largest milk-producing state.

Sodhi said the company will make an investment of about Rs 200-300 crore over the next two years. With an annual sale of around Rs 52,000 crore, the company is aiming to take the business to around Rs 10,000 crore.

Regional companies such as Karnataka's Nandini, Kerala's Milma and Tamil Nadu's Aavin have pulled up their socks too.

Marketing manager of Milma, Rajesh Nair, told Mint that they are focusing on marketing their products better. The company has enlisted a national advertising agency and is investing up to Rs 10-15 crore as compared to their previous budget of Rs 1-3 crore.

Closer home, Nandini, owned by Karnataka Cooperative Milk Federation, has stepped up its efforts too. It is setting up more cafes that will serve tea, coffee, sweets, and snacks made from its product to establish its presence firmly, the article said.

Adding a political angle to the foray, Amul has already signed an agreement with Jagan Mohan Reddy government in Andhra Pradesh where the main dairy company, Heritage Foods Ltd, is run by Chandrababu Naidu's family, Reddy's main rival.