Ghee

Cheese

Paneer

Mithai Mate

Useful Ingredients

Glossary of Ingredients
Chairman's Speech: 29th Annual General Body Meeting on 24
June 2003
Gentlemen,
I believe that all of us present here are blessed to be part of one of the
most ambitiously idealistic movements witnessed by human civilisation-
the movement called cooperation. Cooperation is first and foremost a
philosophy. It is a faith that human beings are capable of transcending
narrow self interest to work together to achieve a common and higher
goal. However, the magic of cooperation is seen when this philosophy is
translated into business and economic success.
There are three ways in which a nation may establish policies to allocate
its resources. First, following the doctrines of Adam Smith, the corporate
sector may be given a free hand in a nation's economy so that nothing
but market forces determine the fate of all socio-economic segments. All
of us know, however, that when a nation's fate is left to market forces,
the economy becomes skewed in favour of the rich, leaving the poor to
the mercy of an unkind fate.
Second, a nation may entrust all its resources to the public sector, the purely socialist approach. But
have witnessed the debilitating inefficiencies and lack of accountability that are inherent in this syste
The third method in which the nation can create and distribute wealth is through cooperat
performance of India's milk cooperatives -- and particularly those in Gujarat -- provides compelling
of the superiority of cooperation over unadulterated capitalism, or socialism. We believe that
cooperation we can create and deliver value to both the producer and the consumer. Cooperation av
inequities of unadulterated capitalism and the inefficiency and unaccountability of the socialist system
serving as an instrument of development. It is not a coincidence that throughout the world, coopera
proven to be the first choice of those involved in the primary sectors, especially agriculture and dairy
in the fitness of things as both agriculture and dairying- involving mass production and mass consu
provide livelihoods to millions of common people in most countries of the world.
However, for a cooperative to deliver value, it needs to remain true to its values, be clear in its mis
run as a highly competitive business. It should be able to create and seize opportunities, to react d
to events, to anticipate and act to take advantage of future trends. To serve its members - whic
reason why cooperatives exist - every cooperative must have obtained the maximum advanta
procurement, processing and most importantly, marketing and branding. Every cooperative n
strengthen its core competencies because unlike in the private corporate and the public sectors, the
be outsourced without risks. The 'Amul Pattern' of cooperatives has been a model that has stood th
time and adversities with flying colours. Developed over more than a half century the Amul appro
been successfully replicated in other states over the last quarter of a century. This model has m
enormous difference in the lives of millions of farmers, bolstering their livelihoods and offering steady
in regions where the best part of agriculture is still rain fed and a gamble on the monsoons.
Amul is a matter of faith. It is faith that has proven to be an instrument of development that has give
dimension to the practice and discourse of development in the country. It is a living example of the tr
farmers should learn to be independent. They should manage their own affairs without interfer
Nehru once said, they will make mistakes while they are learning, but these are only stepping-
success as manifested in the experience of Amul.
However, despite the proven success of the Amul Model, it is being threatened by unsolicited attent
common knowledge that there is a movement afoot for creation of joint venture companies with
state cooperative federations. The putative objective of these ventures is to offer marketing suppo
so-called 'weak' federations. For this purpose, it is deemed necessary to offer a minority stakeholde
to the client federations, while reserving the majority stakeholder status for the NDDB subsidiary.
who has been associated with and worked for cooperatives for most of his life, it saddens me to wit
colossal blow to the philosophy and practice of cooperation. The unkindest cut of all is that it shou
from an organization that was meant to nurture the cooperative movement in India. You may take
for it that while it is extremely arduous and takes years of dedicated hard work to create a su
organization or model, it is very easy to whimsically destroy the same.
I feel hard pressed to find any justification for the trust that the authorities are bestowing upon
NDDB model. The key risk in the joint venture model is that it will dismantle the existing m
federations all over the country. If the Joint Venture model fails, then there will be no organization or
in the farmers' organizations to fall back on for the marketing function. Thus, the experiment w
ventures is well poised to emasculate the healthy cooperative movement and create dependents ou
sufficient farmers. The weak need to be protected and nurtured, not converted into parasites.
I believe that the forgoing observations prove beyond doubt the suspect architecture of the joint
company concept.
The silver lining in all the recent events is the continued good showing by your Federation. The su
the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation in not only defending its market, but in taki
market share in almost all dairy products categories from the best of the Multi National Corporations
as beacon to other cooperatives in these troubled times.
I now present to you your Federation's Annual Report and Audited Accounts for the year 2002-2003.

Milk Procurement
The total milk procurement by our Member Unions reached an average of 52.35 lakh kilograms pe
10.6 percent increase over the 47.32 lakh Kilograms per day, achieved in 2001-2002. Peak proc
touched a high of 67.52 lakh kilograms in a day. This is an all time record of milk procurement.

Sales
During the year, your Federation's sales registered a growth of 17.5 percent increase to reach Rs.
crores including consignment sales of Rs. 404.53 crores. In addition your Federation coordinated
crores in product sales to the Defence services. This year, Amul ice cream achieved record sales, with
growth by 29 per cent. Sale of Amul Milk in pouches increased by seven percent in value terms. UHT
grown in volume terms by 56 percent, which is a very encouraging market response. Amul and Sag
pure ghee sales in volume increased by 27 per cent over the previous year. Despite intense compet
a market recession, sales of Amul Butter grew by seven percent and milk powders remained ste
sales volume of the Amul Cheese range increased by 15 per cent. This is particularly pleasi
demonstrates our ability to resist MNC competition. New products like Paneer, Mithaimate, Softy
fresh curd demonstrated their potential to become dominant brands in the coming few years.

Dhara Oil
The year 2002-03 saw Dhara turnover grow by 18%, retaining, and reinforcing Dhara's consume
This growth was achieved despite a steep rise in market prices of edible oils, in excess of 40%, over
year. Keeping in tune with the market, the year also saw the launch of Dhara FitnFine, refined soy
targeted to the mass consumption segment. The product received a good response wherever it was
and helped boost volumes.

Distribution
Amalgamation of the distribution networks carried out in the previous year continued to yield results
of vast improvement in distributor infrastructure including cold rooms, computers, bank guarantees a
freeze storages. Our Amul Yatra programme has already covered 80% of the distributors and 60%
distributor salesmen, who carry the philosophy of all that Amul stands for, to the market. Over 2
Quality Circles continue to be steered month after month with a national perspective and local fo
annual business plan for each product is now broken up town-by-town and distributor-by-distribu
making the entire planning process thoroughly focused.

Exports
I am pleased to inform you that this year your Federation's export turnover has grown by 17 % in
volume. As you have witnessed, European Union declared heavy subsidies during last year and as
international prices have remained at very low level as compared to previous year. As a result, th
turnover in value terms has declined by 6 % in spite of good growth in volume.
We are proud to inform that our Long Life milk has been very well accepted in the UAE and S
markets. In the International Market we have grown at a rate of 34% in consumer packs reflecting
consumer faith in the Amul brand. We have opened a warehouse in Dubai to better serve custome
region.

Total Quality Management

In 1994, your Federation had embarked on the Total Quality Management journey and in 1999 rece
Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award for the year, 1999, India's premier recognition for quality. Cont
learn, your employees have consistently striven to maintain improved product and service quality
stage of the value chain.
More than 25,000 Kaizens -- small improvements in work areas -- were made by your employees in
areas like cost cutting, time saving and process improvement. To ensure minimum wastage and m
productivity and quality, housekeeping initiatives have been zealously pursued at the Federation
warehouses, and distributor points.
Learning from employing Total Quality Management principles have been cascaded to both the
Dairies as well as distribution channel members. Workshops on Statistical Quality Control ha
conducted across the member dairies to achieve Total Quality in the production process.
One of your Federation's most remarkable achievements has been creation of more than 225 Amu
Circles across the length and breadth of the country. The Federation's wholesale dealers meet every
these quality circles and discuss and resolve distribution problems and improve their distribution proc
Your Federation continues its commitment on improving the competency of its professional m
through its Competency based Training Programme which builds both generic and functional skills thr
house, customized training programmes.

Information Technology Integration

At an early stage, your Federation recognized the IT excellence was essential to retaining our com
edge. During the year, we completed the web layering of our customized ERP-EIAS, linking our
unions and business partners. In the coming year, your Federation will implement Virtual Private
(VPN) connectivity to facilitate "on-line" information exchange with business partners and m
production and sales in order to improve the quality of services and optimisation of resources acros
points.
As recognition of IT excellence, your Federation has been selected for a 2003 International CIO 100 A
We believe that your Federation has achieved recognition as one of the world's leading co-opera
keeping with which we are promoting the .Coop TLD-- Top Level Domain-- project. To this end,
incorporated the .Coop logo in our website www.Amul.coop, which has enhanced the Amul brand ac
world, giving us another vital business advantage.

Cooperative Development Programme

During the last three years, our Member Unions have implemented an Internal Consultant Deve
(ICD) intervention, addressing the needs to strengthen the business of dairy farmer members a
cooperative societies. Members and societies are the foundation on which your Federation rests.
During the year, Member Unions continued to deliver the Vision Mission Strategy (VMS) module for
milk producer members & Village Dairy Cooperatives.
Recognizing that good leaders are essential to face growing challenges, your federation has in
Chairman and Secretaries orientation program, held at Gandhinagar Mother Dairy, which is foc
strengthening leadership skills and values.

Retailing
As envisaged in last year's Annual Report, your Federation has opened Amul 'Utterly Delicious' reta
across the country to enhance visibility and brand equity while making Amul products available un
roof in a pleasant environment to the consumers.
As of today we have opened parlours in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Mum
commitment to get close to the consumer with good quality, nutritious, ready to eat food at 'value fo
prices will continue with the opening of more number of parlours across the country.

What The Future Holds

There is a plan afoot for systematic enervation of cooperative organizations in India. Milk Cooperati
been the silver lining in the country's fight against poverty-especially where all other poverty a
programmes have achieved limited success. It becomes our duty as practitioners and propo
cooperation to ensure that cooperation thrives. The only way in which this may be ensured is to m
cooperatives strong and independent organization. What the farmers need today is a ment
tormentor. I have been an advocate for millions of farmers and have devoted my life to ensuring
farmers- the very backbone of our nation - are not the victims of urban colonialism.
One of the problems of liberalization in India -- unlike in China -- is that the reforms have benefited
30 percent of people who live in urban areas. The entire rural economy is still waiting for its
liberalization. Economic reforms and a fair market price for their products is still beyond the reach o
farmers who get fixed price for their produce irrespective of the international prices or what mark
could have determined for this country.
Our farmers have to operate within these constraints and work towards getting their fair shar
developmental cake-without suffering from the new colonialism of the better educated, the media
market savvy urban forces who treat our rural producers only as hewers of wood and drawers of wat
The proposed JVCs are detrimental to the long-term interests of our farmers and the cooperatives
their trust in. We need strategic partnerships, contractual supply or marketing arrangements a
ventures that give the farmers enhanced democratic control over their own cooperatives-not domin
government organizations under the guise of expertise.
Cooperatives comprise a special category of business organizations, because their raison d` etr
profits for shareholders, but returns to the farmers who invest in land and animals. Therefore, they
be treated differently and with care. Foisting discordant and capitalistic decisions on them will only
them. This gains all the more importance because cooperatives are going to be the most si
instrument of development in the future.
Finally, no modern nation can afford to ignore cooperatives that can determine the strength of its de
fiber. The Indian farmers are deprived, oppressed and with an uncertain future. Our farmers h
resources at their command. Ignoring this important community can only breed restiveness that m
into a powder keg threatening our nation's very existence. However, when farmers are helped to
self-reliant, to managing their own affairs and to manage their livelihoods, they become the strong
nation's democracy. Therefore, it becomes the prime responsibility of the government to
cooperatives. I have fought this for all my life and I will continue to do-unless someone shows me
way of serving our nation's producers to become productive members of our society.

Acknowledgments
Before closing, I would like to thank all those who have helped to make your Federation's op
successful.
We are thankful to the National Co-operative Dairy Federation of India for their support during the y
National Dairy Development Board has played a shining role in our growth and development, in mo
than can be expressed. We thank them.
The Institute of Rural Management, Anand, as always, has contributed to the perspective build
professionalisation of the management of the co-operative sector. We express deep gratitude
support.
Our advertising agencies, bankers, insurers, management consultants, suppliers and transport co
have been of great help to us in managing our growth and are partners in our success. We acknowled
contributions and commit ourselves to continue and strengthen this fruitful alliance in the times to co
We depend on the efficiency of our distributors, retailers and most important of all, the patronag
consumers, who have come to regard our brands as synonymous with quality and value. While
them for their support, we assure them that we shall strive endlessly to delight them.
Our Member Unions are our strength. We thank them for their guidance, support and co-operation
which we would not exist.
The Government of India and the Government of Gujarat have continued to offer supp
encouragement, for which we are grateful.
Lastly, we thank the officers and staff of your Federation for their continued perseverance, loy
unflinching efforts devoted to our cause.
Thank you.
For and on Behalf of Board of Directors
V. Kurien
Chairman

Click below for the other speeches:

• Speech of Chairman, P. G. Bhatol: 34th Annual Report 2007-2008

• Speech of Chairman, P. G. Bhatol: 33rd Annual Report 2006-2007

• Speech of Chairman, P. G. Bhatol: 32nd Annual Report 2005-2006

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 31st Annual Report 2004-2005

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 30th Annual Report 2003-2004

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 28th Annual Report 2001-2002

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 27th Annual Report 2000-2001

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 26th Annual Report 1999-2000

• Speech of Chairman, Dr V Kurien: 25th Annual Report 1998-1999

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