If you’ve already watched Vishal Bharadwaj’s ‘Pataakha,’ you would be able to catch glimpse of Champa (Radhika Madan), nee badki in Ankita Kumawat (31), promoter of M/S Matratva Dairy. This is a unit of Goratan Products Private Ltd.
Quite like Pataakha’s Champa, ever since Ankita was a child, she had dreamt of owning a dairy farm, once day. The dream was that this dairy would specialise not just in any kind of milk – but only in the purest and the most nutritious A2 quality of milk.
What is A2 Milk?
For the uninitiated, A2 quality milk is produced by local, desi cow breeds of India.
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Ankita speaking about her story at IIT Guwahati
Now, before you do a double-take over A1 and A2 milk, let’s first give you a little more introduction into Ankita, an IIM Kolkata alumnus (2009), who carefully mentored by her father Phool Chand, and husband, Lokesh Gupta, eventually managed to quit her high-paying corporate job to fulfil her dream of joining her father’s Matratva Dairy in 2014. She did that with no more than Rs 20 lakh in seed capital. The funds, pooled from personal savings went into animal procurement, asset and machinery purchase. In just four years, the start-up began earning Rs 1 lakh per month. Soon it started signing-up five new co-operatives, on average, every week.
Mr. Phool Chand Kumawat (61) – Ankita’s father
More on the Dairy Dream
Ankita’s unit currently employs 11-people, out of which six are family members, which includes father Phool Chand (61), a 20-year-old veteran in the animal husbandry industry; husband Lokesh (31), who, with eight years of experience in the corporate sector, looks after production. And, of course Ankita, who armed with her management degree remains in charge of Sales and Marketing.
AnkitaSpeak
“There is no work that women can’t do,” she told a news reporter, recently. “We come from a society where women are bagging Olympic medals and men are participating in beauty pageants,” jibed this B-School graduate.
A Blast From the Past
Phool Chand had started Maatratav Dairy for a lark, with a single, desi cow bought for a princely sum of Rs 3500, mainly to raise his daughters on A2 milk. The venture started when he was still working for PWD. Little did he know then that one of his daughters would one day grow up to turn the father’s hobby into a flourishing family enterprise.
Ankita’s husband Mr. Lokesh Gupta looks after the production at Goratan
The Key Operations
Maatratav is based in Ajmer, Rajathan, where, they strictly follow all chemical-free farming practices. All the farming inputs are also made from cattle dung and urine. Lab testing of the milk, vaccination and medical care of the cattle are all handled in-house. Since retail customers are price-sensitive and largely, uninformed about the benefits of A2 milk, Ankita is compelled to sell her produce to milk-co-operatives. But she is hopeful that the retail market would eventually expand for A2 milk.
More on A2 Milk
For the uninitiated what we consume in the cities is A1 milk, processed from exotic, foreign breeds of cows, whose milk yield is high but their fat and SNF is very low. On the other hand we compare this with Indian Desi cow breeds like Gir, Sahiwal, Tharparkar and many more, there milk yield is comparatively low but the fat and SNF count is very high. Thick in texture and packed with nutrients the biggest benefit of A2 milk is that it is easy to digest and improves the immunity. Lay consumers don’t know the hidden benefits of A2 milk and its value added products. So they fall for the bait of the low priced A1 milk.
“Indigenous cow milk production is low, so farmers don’t use desi cows for commercial purposes, which is why we don’t easily get A2 milk. That’s what we should all be having,” Phool Chand had once explained to his daughter, and that became Ankita’s Eureka Moment.
The outcome? The birth of Goratan branded A2 milk and other value-added, dairy products derived from it.
A Typical Day in Ankita’s Life
A day for Ankita starts at the crack of dawn, i.e. 5 am in the morning, so she can reach the farm around 6 am. There, she oversees milk packing for home deliveries. Till 11 – 11:30 am, she is occupied with animal feeding, barn cleaning, etc. Then leaves for her other farm in Nasirabad to fetch green fodder for her animals. She remains at Nasirabad farm till the evening around 6.30 to 7pm, before getting back to the Ajmer farm. Here, she helps her mother with the evening deliveries, feeds the animals, gives them water and leaves for home around 8pm. At home, she turns into a devoted housewife, cooks food for her family, completes other household chores and tired, hits her bed around 10:30 pm, The next morning, is the start of another day.
The above images are from the weekly Haat bazaar held by Team Goratan.
The Plan Ahead
Over the next five years, Ankita’s dream is to emerge as an expert in the dairy sector, and make Matratva (Goratan) the No.1 brand for A2 milk & its value-added products, in not just Rajasthan but the whole of North India.
How the Industry is Growing
Presently, there is an immense room for the organized sector to gain market share in the overall dairy market for A2-based products. The value-added products overall contribute to 35% of the total dairy market in India. Within this, the largest VAP category is ghee, with a market share of 15% in the overall dairy market. A gradual market shift from commercial cow products to A2 cow products is being observed over the past couple of years. Further, as per the statistics offered by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, organized milk handling is expected to grow from the present 20% to 50% by 2022-23.
“One needs an initial investment of only Rs 10 lakhs to start his or her own dairy farm with a basic set-up,” says Ankita.
Matratva Dairy Farm’s stall showcasing its business model and products at the Rajasthan DigiFest 2018 in Bikaner. The festival had events that catered to all sections of the society.
Organic Is Growing
With the current craze for pure, organic foods among health-conscious consumers, we asked Ankita what would the future of A2 milk be? Pat comes her answer, “Have no doubt. A2 milk is the future of dairy business in India. People will adopt A2 milk over A1 milk sooner or later. But sooner would be better, if you want to stay healthy, fit and reduce your family medical bills.”
Didn’t Champa make a similar announcement in Pataakha?
A case of reel aping real life? Perhaps.
More on A2 vs A1 milk?
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