The landscape of the milk business has undergone a significant shift, extending beyond the realms of cows and buffaloes. Amul Dairy, operating as the Kaira District Co-operative Milk Producers Union Limited (KDCMPUL), has recognized this change and ventured into the rapidly expanding poultry sector. Amul Dairy, popularly known for its cooperative approach, has strategically tapped into the growing opportunities within the poultry industry, showcasing its adaptability and forward-thinking mindset.
Amul Dairy, renowned for its expansive cattle feed manufacturing unit, has recently introduced Amul poultry feed for the benefit of farmers. However, the offerings don’t stop there. The esteemed milk union is preparing to introduce fish feed along with a diverse range of pet foods. With an impressive production capacity of 3,200 tonnes of cattle feed per day, Amul Dairy is well-equipped to meet the demands of its customers.
Amul Dairy’s poultry feed stands out as a fascinating innovation, as it is entirely vegetarian unlike traditional poultry feeds that comprise a blend of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian components.
According to dairy officials, the inclusion of vegetarian raw materials in poultry feed decreases the chances of poultry contracting infections, which often results in higher mortality rates.
“In the last 10 years, with 7.5% growth, poultry farming has emerged as one of the fastest growing segments in India which is now the third largest producer of eggs globally,” said Amul Dairy’s Managing Director Amit Vyas.
The poultry industry’s revenue has already crossed INR 2.5 lakh crore mark. “There are immense employment opportunities available in this sector. But poultry disease is a major factor impacting the economics of farming. Hence, instead of animal origin ingredients that are used for manufacturing poultry feed, we are manufacturing poultry feed from vegetarian sources,” he said.
“Our target is to sell 5,000 metric tonnes of poultry feed in 2023-24,” said Vyas, adding that in the first month of production, it has already sold 40 tonnes of poultry feed in Maharashtra.
“We have started manufacturing in Maharashtra. We will soon start making the feed variants in Gujarat, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab,” said Amul Dairy’s Chairman Vipul Patel.
To achieve enhanced growth rates, superior meat quality with tenderness, improved feed conversion ratio (FCR), increased egg production, and cost efficiency, poultry feed is typically produced for broiler or layer categories of chickens. This feed formulation commonly incorporates ingredients such as soybean, maize, bajra, barley, maize gluten, along with various growth-promoting additives. To provide a well-rounded diet, these vegetarian components are combined with animal-based ingredients like bone and meat meal, fish meal, blood meal, and other by-products sourced from slaughterhouses.
“However, if animal origin ingredients are used, birds are more susceptible to infections like E Coli, salmonella and concordial often turning fatal for them. Hence, we have manufactured poultry feed only from vegetarian sources. Our poultry feed has 20-23% protein, 3.5-4% fat along with a range of other nutrients,” said a dairy official.
“The ingredients that we have used, lowers FCR and higher growth rate in broiler and layer birds,” he said.
“We will soon launch layer feed for different phases of egg production and poultry feed supplements for the benefit of poultry farmers,” said Vyas.