India’s dairy brand Amul to enter the European market

Amul, India’s largest dairy brand, is set to launch fresh milk products in Europe by partnering with a Spanish milk cooperative. The partnership enables local production, helping Amul bypass high EU import taxes and stringent compliance norms.

Amul, India’s largest dairy brand, plans to sell fresh milk products in Europe by the end of this month, according to Jayen Mehta, the company’s managing director and the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation.

According to Jayen Mehta, MD at Amul, the company would enter the European market through a partnership with a milk cooperative in Spain. The Spanish Cooperative will supply milk, which will be pasteurised and sold throughout Europe. The cooperative in Spain will do the production, but Amul will handle the marketing and branding.

The local partnership will save Amul the difficulty of exporting milk directly from India to the EU market. While the European Union allows milk and milk products to be imported, the taxes are substantial, and the compliance requirements are extensive.

Countries that accept milk imports are classified into distinct categories, and each has its own set of certification standards. A licence to export must be obtained. Products are tested at borders and must be accompanied by animal health certificates. However, the EU allows imports with reduced tariffs from nations with which it has trade agreements.

However, India has been hesitant to include the dairy industry in any of the free trade agreements (FTAs) that it is negotiating or participating in. Despite India’s status as the world’s largest milk producer since 1998, the dairy industry is delicate because it relies heavily on small farmers with a few milch cows and cannot compete with bigger dairy corporations that source milk from farmers with herd sizes ranging from 8,000 to 10,000.