Cultivating a liquid milk habit

The recent hike in milk powder prices was widely expected due to the increase in prices in the world market. Only a few countries produce milk powder including New Zealand, Australia and some of the Scandinavian countries.

Sri Lanka spends billions of rupees every year (foreign exchange, actually) on milk powder imports. These countries record substantial earnings from the sale of milk powder to Sri Lanka under various brand names.

Why are we so dependent on milk powder ? Most Sri Lankans need a ‘cuppa’ or ‘milk tea’ in local parlance as soon as they get up. This is somewhat amusingly called ‘bed tea’, but it is a habit that dies hard. They also need a cup of milk tea in the morning and/or afternoon, although some prefer so-called ‘plain-tea’ without the milk. Milk Tea is also offered to visitors who turn up at any time.

To comprehend why we ‘cannot do’ without milk powder, we have to turn back the clock by a few decades. Refrigerators were a novelty and a luxury at that time. The people simply had no way to store perishables, so they had to buy and consume everything ‘fresh’.

The same applied to liquid milk. Where liquid milk was available, they had to consume it without delay. But the only way to have milk on demand, for the vast majority who did not have a refrigerator, was by purchasing (imported) powdered milk.

There is no doubt that milk powder is highly convenient. It can be kept at room temperature, in an airtight container, for months. All one has to do is add tea/water and/or sugar to a few spoonfuls of milk powder, depending on one’s preferences.

It was a godsend to mothers who wanted to give milk to their children. It was handy when visitors turned up. ‘Bed tea’ was just a matter a matter of mixing the right ingredients.

Decades later, we are still dependent on milk powder, although more or less every household has a refrigerator. Liquid milk is also more widely available, in bottled, packeted and loose form (through retail and mobile outlets of Milco/Highland and the National Livestock Development Board).

If you visit a supermarket in a developed country, one thing is instantly noticeable. There is almost no ‘plain’ milk powder for adults, full cream and non-fat.

The only varieties of milk powder varieties available are targeted at infants and very young children, for instances where mothers cannot breastfeed or are advised to provide milk powder to their children.

Malted milk powder varieties are also available in addition to chocolate flavoured milk powder and milk powder based food supplements. However, there is a large selection of plain liquid milk in various quantities at very reasonable prices. Every family can afford to buy liquid milk.

As the saying goes, if there is a will, there is a way. We can achieve the same ‘milk revolution’ if we can iron out a few issues that affect the local dairy industry. From the consumer’s point of view, liquid milk is still expensive in this country, at around Rs. 100 per litre (minimum) at the point of sale.

A 400 grame pack of milk powder holds the equivalent of more than three litres of liquid milk and even at Rs. 250, is cheaper than the liquid version on a litre by litre basis. In any case, these premium brands of liquid milk are available only at supermarkets and better-class groceries, which limits their availability to the wider public.

The authorities must do more to expand the availability of liquid milk through Lak Sathosa, NLDB and Highland outlets. More groceries with refrigeration facilities should be identified for the sale of liquid milk, bearing in mind that imported milk powder is available at practically every grocer in the country.

They should also take steps to popularise UHT milk and Kal Kiri (Sinhala term for long lasting milk), which can be kept even without refrigeration for at least six months in bottled or Tetrapak form until they are opened.

But the main challenge for the dairy industry is balancing the interests of the dairy farmer and the consumer. The consumer will be pleased if liquid milk is more reasonably priced and the farmer will prefer a better farm gate price. The only way this goal can be achieved is increasing dairy production by having more top quality cows in our grasslands and farms.

Our authorities should study the Indian model of livestock and dairy development. The Indian cooperatives sector has been in the forefront of the milk revolution and some of its products are exported to many countries including Sri Lanka.

It is an example for a developing country which has a very advanced dairy industry and which has gained the upper hand over foreign products including milk powder. One cannot stop the multinational juggernaut in an open economy, but local producers can offer tough competition, as seen in India.

As things stand, local dairy production alone is insufficient to meet the demand. This also creates a vacuum which is partly filled by milk powder imports. The Government should accelerate the program of importing cows for the dairy industry. The dairy industry in the North and the East should be revived expeditiously, as these two regions can make a significant contribution.

There should be more chilling and processing centres for the farmers to hand in their milk collection. Milco and Lanka Milk Foods, both of which make spray dried milk powder locally, must be more aggressively involved in this.

The ultimate aim should be to fulfil the demand for both liquid and powdered milk through local producers. In the long run, we might also be able to cut down on imports of other dairy products such as cheese, butter, yoghurt and cream.

At the heart of this whole phenomenon is perhaps our consumers’ innate desire to buy all things foreign even if the local products are on par, quality-wise. It is no secret that the two moderately priced local brands of milk powder are struggling to compete with the imported brands, with the (most expensive) brand imported from New Zealand topping the sales.

The Ganna Apey Dey (Buy Sri Lankan Products) campaign initiated by several leading local companies has succeeded to some extent in convincing consumers that local products are best.

However, there is a notion that many local products including liquid milk and milk powder are inferior to their imported counterparts. Sadly, this is true for some products.

Therefore, there is an immediate need to improve the quality of local products across the board in order to compete effectively with foreign goods. That is the best way to convince the public to give up or at least minimise the use of, foreign products.

The media must be used extensively in this campaign as well as in a campaign to establish ‘a liquid milk habit’ among the people. That will help save billions of rupees which can be channelled for development of the local dairy industry and the overall economy.

It will also bring a sense of joy to all those who consume locally produced fresh milk, knowing that a dairy farmer somewhere is being benefitted, not to mention the economy itself.