A Crusader in Integrated Dairy Farming

A crusader in integrated dairy farming. More than a farmer, perhaps, this would be the ideal way to hail A R Avaneendranathan of Payattuvila in Kottukal panchayat near Balaramapuram in Thiruvananthapuram.

From a small-time dairy farmer, he has emerged into a proud owner of a dairy unit by successfully adopting integrated farming.

Nathans Dairy Farm, comprising about 100 cows, has a daily production of over 600 litres of milk and caters to the needs of several households in and around Payattuvila. Apart from local supply of milk, Nathans dairy unit gives 350 litres of milk to MILMA every day. “My aim is to increase the production to 1000 litres per day,” says Avaneendranathan, who earlier had a mini homestead dairy farm.

The sheer passion for dairy farming and the innate ability to do experiments in farming are the secrets of his success. One may wonder how dairy farming can be profitable considering the skyrocketing prices of cattle feed, straw and grass and high labour charges. Here is where integrated farming comes to play.

“Don’t depend solely on cattle feed, straw and grass. This is the only way to run the show profitably,” Nathan says. He cultivates banana and tapioca on four acres of land. “Leaves and stem of banana and tapioca are the main feed for cattle. Coconut leaves are also given. And the cow dung is the main manure for banana and tapioca”. Nathan also uses brewery waste as a cattle feed, which is available at the rate of Rs 4 per kg.

According to Nathan, small scale dairy farming will only become profitable if the price of milk is increased to Rs 30 a litre. “See, a milking cow should be given 10 kg of cattle feed, 35 kg of grass and 10 kg of straw a day. One kg each of cattle feed and grass cost Rs 15 and Rs 2 respectively. Thus, it requires a minimum sum of Rs 225 for a cow daily, which produces over 25 litres of milk a day. On an average, we have a production of 600 litres a day. Though we have to feed 100 cows more or less in the same rate, only half of them will be in the milking stage. That’s where the economics of dairy farming goes wrong. The expense comes around Rs 22,000 and the income is only 15,000,” he said.

Nathan follows a definite pattern for feeding and milking the cows. For him, a day starts at 1 a.m. The first thing is to give feed to the cattle. By the time his employees join Nathan, he would have removed the cow dung and other waste from the shed. After cleaning the cows, the milking will start at around 3.30 a.m. “Machines are used for milking and at a time two cows can be milked,” Nathan said. Another group of employees will join at around 7 a.m. who will be engaged in feeding the cattle and cleaning. The second milking of the day starts at 3 p.m.

Cleanliness and hygiene are very important in dairy farming. “Before milking, cow’s udder is washed using potassium permanganate. The whole shed is washed using lotion or bleaching powder and maintained dry. Utmost care has to be taken to keep the cow’s hoof dry to prevent infection,” Nathan says.

Another highlight of Nathan’s dairy farm is the presence of traditional cattle breeds like Kapila, Kasargod Dwarf and Vechoor. The other breeds include HF (Holstein Freisian), Brown Jersey and Jersey. Besides, he owns a mini goat farm which consists of high yielding varieties like Malabari Goat, Jamnapari, Saanen and Vendoor. “Goat milk is mainly supplied for ayurvedic medicinal purposes,” he adds.

According to Nathan, the encouragement he got from Krishi Bhavan, Dairy Development Board and Animal Husbandry Department has helped a lot in his endeavour. Recently, he got a subsidy for setting up the heifer unit with 30 calves. But, he has also expressed some discontent over certain initiatives of the animal husbandry department.

“The only way to promote and support dairy farming and farmers is to provide subsidy to cattle feed. Now, the situation is worse. The expense is so huge that one does dairy farming even with five cows. Projects should be evolved through which the expense can be brought down. Farmers should be given 50 percent subsidy on cattle feed on the basis of the quantity of milk they supply to the milk societies. In states like Karnataka, dairy farmers are given a subsidy of Rs 2 for a litre of milk by the government in addition to its price,’’ Nathan points out.

(The New Indian Express, City Express, 2011)