Milma Chairman K S Mani Gets Indian Dairy Association’s Best Dairy Professional Award

KOZHIKODE:

In a significant national recognition, Milma Federation (Kerala Co- operative Milk Marketing Federation) Chairman K S Mani has been awarded the Indian Dairy Association’s Best Dairy Professional Award in recognition of his comprehensive contributions to the dairy industry in the country.

The award was presented at the Southern Dairy and Food Summit (SDFC) held in Kozhikode. In the presence of State Minister for Dairy Development and Animal Husbandry J. Chinchurani, the award was conferred upon Mani by Andhra Pradesh Minister for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Kinjirapu Atchannaidu.

Accepting the award, Mani said he would dedicate the honour to nearly one million dairy farmer colleagues in Kerala. “I have been working in the dairy sector for 37 years, during which sustained efforts were made both to enhance the income of dairy farmers in the state and to steer Milma towards commercial growth, he said, adding: It is a matter of pride that Kerala farmers receive the highest price for milk per litre in the country.”

Mani said projects aimed at Milma’s growth are being implemented, alongside welfare schemes for dairy farmers. A milk powder factory of Milma has been started in Malappuram, and a wide range of value-added products has been launched in the market. On festive and special occasions, Milma products have consistently achieved record-breaking sales, he pointed out.

Efforts undertaken in collaboration with the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to introduce modern technologies in production and distribution have also yielded results, he said. The modernisation of production units and research for diversified value-added products are also progressing effectively.

In this category, awards were also presented to Nara Bhuvaneshwari, Vice Chairperson of Heritage Foods Limited; Chalimeda Rajeshwar Rao, Chairman of Karimnagar Milk Producer Company Limited; G R Balasubrahmanyam, Managing Director of GRB Dairy Foods; R Mohanasundaram, Managing Director of Amrita Dairy; and Dr P I Geevarghese, former Dean of KVASU.

These awards were presented by J Chinchurani, Tamil Nadu Minister for Dairy Development T Mano Thangaraj, Puducherry Minister for Agriculture and Animal Husbandry C Jayakumar, and other ministers.

The Best Women Dairy Farmer Awards were presented to Bindu V P from Kerala, Agandi Radha (Telangana)) Shivani Rajashekhar Mattihalli (Karnataka), Padmini S(Tamil Nadu), and Nagajyothi Chandrashekhar (Andhra Pradesh).