Dairy Products Marketing in Bharatpur Metropolitan City, Nepal

Efficient marketing system is essential to operate dairy industry in its full potential but past studies were inadequate to visualize milk marketing system in Bharatpur Metropolitan city. This survey was conducted during January to March of 2018 with the aims of analyzing socioeconomic characteristics of milk producers, determining marketing channels and margins receiving by the chain actors. Study collected primary information from 50 households and 16 key informants. Farmers, MPCs, chilling centers, processors, traders and consumers were major identified actors in four marketing channels. Out of 50 sampled households, 14 % were illiterate, 36 % earned from salary, 18 % and 16 % from remittance and business respectively.78 % of 5047 tons produced milk was marketed surplus, out of which 89 % entered formal marketing channel supplying 3 % milk to local consumers through hot chain and 97 % to large processors through cold chain. Although Producers share was 100 % in direct selling to final consumer it was not sufficient to handle all the produced milk. Processors not only added highest value on raw milk but also received highest margin. Unit investment in raw milk gave highest net profit from ice-cream (2.963 rupees) and lowest from packet milk (0.37 rupees) after adding 6.05 and 0.245 rupees, respectively. Low price on SNF and fat content of milk had increased threat of dissatisfied farmers retreat from dairying. NDDB is suggested to give high attention in policy formation regarding aggressive competition of multinational products and local dairies with formal milk processing and distribution function.