Bengaluru: All 16 district milk cooperative unions of Karnataka Milk Federation Friday urged the state govt to increase Nandini milk price by Rs 5 a litre on the back of severe drought, rising input costs and widening losses.Chief minister DK Shivakumar is expected to decide on the proposal on Saturday. If approved, the price revision will be the fourth in three years. The unions had sought an increase of ₹8 to ₹10 per litre, along with a similar hike in incentive paid to dairy farmers. Later, they pared it to Rs 5.A litre of blue-packet milk (toned) is currently priced at Rs 46, green (special) at Rs 50 and orange pack at Rs 52The govt is looking to strike a balance between improving farmers’ returns and shielding consumers from a sharp price shock.Bangalore Milk Union president DK Suresh said milk cooperatives are under financial pressure in the past 6-7 months. “KMF has maintained low prices in public interest. With private dairies aggressively procuring milk at higher rates, Karnataka’s milk cooperatives are facing pressure to remain competitive,” he added.Sources in KMF said Karnataka’s milk producers remain among the lower-paid dairy farmers in South India. While farmers in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra receive more than ₹41 per litre, Karnataka producers receive around ₹35.KMF, which handles 60 lakh litres of milk a day, is said to be losing ₹60 lakh a day amid the widening gap between procurement costs and consumer prices.
