World Milk Day: Unmasking the Realities of India’s Dairy Supply Chain

Animal suffering, hormone misuse, and environmental harm lurk behind India’s milk production boom

Ratnakar Mavilach 3 weeks agoLast Updated: June 7, 2025

6 3 minutes read

Across India today, billboards and social media feeds are flooded with cheery images of farmers holding stainless steel cans of milk, children drinking tall glasses, and catchy slogans about “milk for strength.” What these glossy images omit, however, is the less flattering truth behind many of the dairy practices that sustain the industry.

India produces more milk than any other country. This, on the surface, sounds like a national achievement. Yet speak to veterinary experts, environmental researchers, or even some disillusioned cooperative workers, and a different story starts to form—one that’s far removed from the carefully managed public relations around milk.

Many dairies—particularly in unorganised urban and peri-urban areas—continue to operate under appalling conditions. Cattle are tied in tight, poorly ventilated stalls. Clean drinking water is not always provided. In hotter months, it’s not uncommon to see animals standing knee-deep in their own excreta. All of this is routine, not rare.

Hormone Use and Health Hazards

There’s also the matter of hormones. Despite being banned, oxytocin is still reportedly used in some places to force animals to release milk. Market inspections occasionally seize unlabelled ampoules, but enforcement has been sporadic and easily bypassed.

Milk drawn from such animals can carry residual traces of not just hormones, but antibiotics as well. Why antibiotics? Because mastitis—an infection of the udder—is extremely common in the commercial dairy setting. Animals with this condition are often milked without any withdrawal period. The milk, laced with pharmaceutical residues, enters the consumer chain unchecked.

While large corporations have their internal quality checks, smaller vendors do not. Milk is still largely handled in metal containers, passed through loosely regulated supply chains, and sold to buyers who have no visibility into its origin.

The Climate Cost Few Talk About

Methane emissions are rarely part of dairy conversations in India, but they should be. One of the byproducts of dairy production—especially from ruminants like cows and buffaloes—is methane. It’s a short-lived climate pollutant but significantly more potent than carbon dioxide.

In many states, large dairy operations exist next to open drains, where slurry and waste are discharged without treatment. Some villages near expanding dairies have already started reporting changes in groundwater taste and color. Yet these are local problems, not policy problems, which means they rarely make it to official reports.

The Abandonment Pipeline

When cows stop producing milk, what happens? Farmers in some regions release them onto roads or fields. Others are sold through informal routes to traders. What follows often violates animal protection laws, but because these trades are informal, enforcement barely touches the surface.

Buffaloes, especially female ones, fetch more because they produce higher fat-content milk. Once they no longer do, they’re often funneled into slaughter systems that operate in the grey market. Animal shelters, already stretched thin, cannot absorb the numbers being offloaded.

The economics is simple: when an animal stops giving, its value drops to near zero.

Attempts at Reform – But Are They Enough?

There are some programs that aim to address this. A few states have introduced animal health cards. Some cooperatives provide fodder subsidies and access to veterinary camps. New startups are experimenting with pasture-based systems and cruelty-free certification models. But these represent a fraction of the sector.

The truth is, India’s dairy system is simply too vast and too fragmented. Over 70% of the milk comes from small and marginal farmers. Most don’t own more than two or three animals. These farmers don’t operate on spreadsheets and audits—they operate on thin margins and traditional know-how.

Changing that reality requires not just regulation, but cultural shifts and financial support that actually reaches the last mile.

So, What Are We Celebrating?

If you walk into a supermarket today, you’ll see discounted milk cartons, branded posters, and cheerful jingles on loop. It’s World Milk Day. But for many who work behind the scenes—from caregivers struggling with sick livestock to volunteers trying to rescue abandoned cows—the day is far more sobering.

Milk continues to be an important source of nutrition. No one disputes that. But the way it’s being produced, and the toll it’s taking on animals, land, and water—those are harder conversations, and they’re long overdue.

As public awareness grows and consumers begin asking sharper questions, the industry may find it increasingly difficult to mask its shortcomings behind generic slogans. Until then, the white liquid in your glass will continue to carry a backstory far darker than it appears.

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Author Profile

Ratnakar Mavilach

Chief Editor at Hindustan Herald | Web

Ratnakar Mavilach is a seasoned journalist and digital media strategist with 10+ years of experience in politics, geopolitics, and current affairs. Founder of ventures like Hinglishgram and Debonair Magazine’s revival, he leads Hindustan Herald with sharp editorial vision, domain depth, and a relentless focus on impactful storytelling.