Piyush Goyal asks International Dairy Federation (IDF) to direct sustained efforts towards making small dairy farms in developing nations more productive

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal asked the International Dairy Federation (IDF) to direct focused efforts towards finding relevant, contemporary, practical and cost-effective solutions to make small dairy farms industry in developing nations more productive, sustainable, eco-friendly, quality oriented and profitable. He was addressing the World Dairy Summit 2022 (WDS 2022) of IDF in Greater Noida. He also urged IDF to explore the possibility of stationing a small team of experts in India to carry out research at the farm level, study India’s varied climatic conditions and come up with solutions that will help us align ourselves with the global standards and global emission norms.

Highlighting India’s status as the largest producer of dairy products in the world, with nearly one-fourth of the world’s production, the Minister expressed confidence that with greater international engagement and the strong initiative taken by the government, the cooperative sector and the farmers, India’s share of the global dairy market will see significant growth in the years to come. This, he said, would greatly benefit the small and marginal farmers of India and give them much needed supplementary income and contribute towards better nutrition for their children.

Drawing a picture of contrast between India where a large number of farmers with small land holdings are engaged in dairying and developed nations where relatively fewer numbers of farmers are engaged in production, the Minister called upon stakeholders of the dairy industry to find contemporary, relevant solutions to aid small farmers. The Minister said that the commitment to support the developing world in climate mitigation was made by the developed world more than a decade ago and was reiterated at the COP 21 in Paris where India played a leading role in aligning the world to work towards achieving climate goals. 7 years after COP 21, Shri Goyal said that we were still only hearing slogans and seeing no action. He said that he would be speaking on behalf of the entire developing world if he says that ‘we mean business’ when it comes to climate change.

‘I can assure you that India wants to be a part of the solution and not the problem’, he said.

The Minister expressed confidence that in any analysis comparing India’s dairy sector to the mechanized dairy industry of the developed world, India would come out as a winner when it comes to sustainability.

Source: Press Information Bureau