Supply of milk hit, hoteliers ban beef

Kochi: In the wake of a spurt in the foot and mouth disease cases in various parts of the state, the quantity of milk being supplied by dairy farmers has come down while the Kerala Hotel and Restaurant Association  has banned supply of beef in hotels in Ernakulam district.

“In the Ernakulam region of Milma, the quantity of milk has decreased by 35,000 to 40,000 litres per day. The region comprising Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kottayam and Idukki districts has been procuring over 2.1 lakh litres daily whereas the requirement is 3.2 lakh litres,” said Balan Master, chairman of Ernakulam region of Milma.

The worst hit  is Thrissur district where over  900 cows and calves have already died and over  15,000 cattle are affected by the disease. The situation is grim as the dairy farmers are not ready to treat the affected animals and they prefer to sell them. 

However, despite a huge gap between supply and demand, Milma is not planning any immediate hike in  prices. "It is not easy to increase the price," added Balan Master.

He admitted that there would be severe scarcity of milk by next month if there was no improvement in the situation. Since cows in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry are also  struck by  the disease, the milk availability in those states is also down. 

Milma is now depending on milk from Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra which is costlier due to  transportation expenses.

The KHRA has banned beef in hotels in the wake of the decision of the Cochin Corporation to ban slaughtering in its limits. "If we allow beef, then it will come from illegal slaughtering. So we decided against it," said Jose Mohan, secretary, KHRA. "We are reviewing the situation in other districts and will take a decision in a day or two," he added.