Anand, in the state of Gujarat, is home to the headquarters of Amul, an Indian dairy state government cooperative association. It is a cooperative brand that was established in 1946 and is managed by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. (GCMMF). Today, it is jointly controlled by 36 lakh milk producers in Gujarat as well as the apex body of 13 district milk unions that are spread across 13,500+ villages in Gujarat. Amul was a driving force behind India’s “White Revolution,” which resulted in India becoming the largest producer of milk and milk products in the world. AMUL is an abbreviation that stands for “Anand Milk Union Limited.”

Under the direction of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel rose through the ranks of the 

organization to become its founding chairman. He served in this capacity until his retirement in the 1970s. In 1949, he hired Verghese Kurien and was successful in persuading him to remain and assist with the mission. Kurien was initially Amul’s general manager and assisted in directing the company’s efforts in both technical and marketing areas while serving under the chairmanship of Tribhuvandas. After Tribhuvandas Kishishihai Patel passed away in 1994, Kurien filled in as chairman of Amul for a short time. Amul’s marketing is said to have been successful because 

of Kurien, who served as the founder and chairman of the GCMMF for more than three decades (1973–2006).

Amul is now operating in international marketplaces.

History And Present-

On December 19, 1946, in reaction to the exploitation of small-scale milk producers by middlemen in larger towns, the Amul Cooperative Society was formally established. At the time, milk prices were set at will. Polson had been granted a virtual monopoly by the government on the gathering of milk in Kaira and its distribution to Mumbai.

Farmers of Kaira, led by farmer leader Tribhuvandas K. Patel, went to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel to complain about unfair trading practices. Instead of going via Polson, he suggested they band together as a cooperative (the Kaira District Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union) and sell their milk directly to the Bombay Milk Scheme (who did the same but gave them low prices). To get the farmers organized, he dispatched Morarji Desai. The local milk producers went on strike in 1946, prompting the establishment of a cooperative to gather and process milk. As most milk producers were small-scale farmers who could only produce a few ounces per day, milk collecting was handled on a decentralized basis. Also, in each community, cooperatives emerged. The KDCMPUL began pasteurizing milk for the Bombay Milk Scheme in June 1948. Amul’s cattle feed factory was opened at Anand, and Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri was there to do the honors. After visiting the hamlet on October 31 and talking with farmers about their cooperative, he returned to Delhi and initiated the formation of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to spread the model of the Kaira cooperative throughout the rest of India. In 1973, Amul celebrated its 25th anniversary under the direction of Tribhuvandas Patel, in the company of Morarji Desai, Maniben Patel, and Verghese Kurien.

Working with Tribhuvandas Patel at the helm, Verghese Kurien and H. M. Dalaya expanded the cooperative’s offerings. Dalaya’s development of a process to produce skim milk powder from buffalo milk was a game-changer for India’s commercial dairy sector.

The first modern dairy cooperative was established in Anand with Kurien’s assistance as the technique was scaled up on a commercial level. The group would eventually go head-to-head with industry giants.

As a result of their success at the cooperative’s dairy, word of T. K. Patel, Kurien, and Dalaya quickly traveled across Anand’s Gujarat area. In a short amount of time, five further unions were established in the districts of Mehsana, Banaskantha, Baroda, Sabarkantha, and Surat, all following what is sometimes referred to as the Anand pattern.

It was a major force in India’s “White Revolution” in the year 1970. The Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. was established in 1973 as the top marketing body of these district cooperatives to pool resources, increase market share, reduce advertising costs, and eliminate intra-cooperative competition. The Amul trademark, owned by the Kaira Union since 1955, has been licensed to GCMMF.

The Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award for the “Best of all” was given to it in 1999.

New technologies pioneered by Amul have since become standard across the rest of India.

When it comes to marketing food items in India, the GCMMF is by far the most influential group. Throughout Gujarat, this group serves as the umbrella organization for all dairy cooperatives. It’s the only company authorized to sell goods labeled with the Amul and Sagar names. More than 3.1 million (3.1 million) village milk products have been linked with crores of consumers in India thanks to the efforts of dairy cooperatives in Gujarat over the past five and a half decades. The Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. is one of the few Indian food enterprises to have a sales turnover of over $1 billion, a milestone it reached in 2007. Dairy cooperatives in Gujarat that are part of the GCMMF have broken another big record: on December 27, 2007, they procured more than 10 million kg of milk, making them the largest dairy network in India. Without any milk holidays, the entire quantity of milk sent was taken and turned into milk and other dairy products.

Amul’s chocolate factory in Mogar, Anand, close to their headquarters, was officially opened on 30 September 2018 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. When compared to the old plant’s monthly output of 250 tonnes, the new facility’s capacity of 1,000 tonnes per month is a significant improvement. There is an estimated 3 billion yen () worth of investment from GCMMF. This manufacturing facility is virtually entirely devoid of human involvement in the production process.

Its Products and Impact

This particular portfolio area has grown at a rate of 53% for Amul over the years. UHT treatment eliminates all microorganisms while maintaining the milk’s nutritional value in long-life UHT products for urban populations like Amul Taaza packed in Tetra Pak cartons. Amul expects daily sales of its UHT milk and other value-added products to increase by 25%, at which point the company will have to expand production to meet demand. Amul’s UHT products have propelled the company to the forefront of the packaged milk industry without requiring the company to invest in costly refrigeration infrastructure.

This has been the story of one of the great giants of the manufacturing Industry. Amul has proven to be one of the strongest pillars of the Indian Economy. It has constantly been able to move forward.