Magh Bihu means feasting for the Assamese people and it is during this Bihu in Assam that people used to have traditional food items like chira (flattened rice) with curd, cream etc. This year too, paneer, curd and cream sales in Guwahati and adjoining areas increased substantially this Magh Bihu as people from all walks of life took part in the festivities.
Assam’s largest dairy cooperative, Purabi Dairy, which enjoys over 40 per cent market share in the city, witnessed average sales of over 1 lakh litres of milk and milk equivalent of products in the four days around Magh Bihu.
“Purabi” the brand operated by West Assam Milk Producers’ Cooperative Union Ltd (WAMUL) registered sales of over 85,000 litres of milk per day during this Bihu season. It witnessed phenomenon growth in terms of product sales – 35 per cent growth in paneer sales, cream volume increased by 9 per cent, 23MT of curd products were also sold during the 3 days of the festival, which is a growth of 18 per cent over the same period last year,” said WAMUL spokesperson.
He said the new Purabi Ghee also registered brisk sales as it grew by over 4 times. Authorities at Purabi Dairy expressed their satisfaction that they could meet the consumers demand to a great extent this year.
“This Magh Bihu as well we were able to achieve a remarkable increase in sales figures. Our average sale of milk and milk equivalent in our products went past 1.25 lakh litres per day. This continued love from our customers helps us provide an enhanced revenue opportunity to the dairy farmers,” said the spokesperson.
He further said that the foundation stone laying for the expansion of Purabi dairy plant, by CM Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma, Cabinet Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Parshottam Rupala and Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries and Cooperation minister Atul Bora, would further boost the sales to achieve exponential growth in the coming years.
The milk union has been at the forefront of enabling farmers in the state to be ‘Aatmanirbhar’ through dairying as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During FY 2020-21, the milk union attained a sales turnover of Rs 120 crores which is around 15 per cent higher than the one achieved during the previous financial year. WAMUL looks forward to cross the sales turnover figure of Rs. 150 crores in the current financial year.
This has helped WAMUL to plough back a significant amount generated out of its business operations during the year in the form of an additional milk procurement price paid to its eligible dairy farmers.