Recently, the A1 vs A2 beta-casein debate was reignited when the FSSAI issued a notification requiring food business operators to stop labeling dairy products as A2. However, due to significant backlash, the FSSAI quickly withdrew this advisory.

Beta-caseins are proteins found in all dairy products except ghee. Since ghee is pure fat with no protein content, labeling it as A1 or A2 is irrelevant.

While anecdotal evidence suggests that some people can only tolerate A2 dairy products, there is no conclusive scientific evidence linking A1 milk to widespread health issues. Nonetheless, A2 dairy products, typically from Indigenous cows, are often more expensive than those from cross-bred cows, raising the question of why. This blog explores the factors behind the higher cost of Indigenous cow dairy products.

The Four Major Reasons Indigenous Cow Dairy Products Are More Expensive

Lower Milk Yield of Indigenous Cows

Indigenous cows naturally produce less milk than their cross-bred counterparts due to their smaller size. However, the cost and effort required to maintain these cows are comparable, regardless of size. Consequently, the cost per litre of milk is higher for Indigenous breeds, contributing to the overall expense of their dairy products.

Environmental and Ethical Considerations

Cross-breeding through artificial insemination has led to an increase in milk production, but at a significant environmental cost. The water and energy-intensive cultivation of fodder for these high-yielding cows has contributed to the lower cost of milk in the market. However, this practice comes at the expense of converting diverse pastoral and forested lands into cultivated fields, which reduces biodiversity and carbon sequestration in the soil.

Cows are ruminants with a digestive system designed to process grass, not grains. A high-grain diet adversely affects their digestive health, making them prone to conditions like diarrhea. While most farmers use a mix of grazing and fodder feed, the trend is shifting towards a grain-heavy diet, driven by the declining availability of labor for herding. Raising cows—whether Indigenous or cross-bred—on grains without allowing them to graze is not only unethical but also environmentally unsustainable.

Limited Byproduct Utilization in Small-Scale Production

Factory-produced ghee results in two byproducts: skimmed milk (from separating cream) and buttermilk (from separating butter). In contrast, home-produced ghee from curd generates only one byproduct: buttermilk, which is thicker than factory-produced buttermilk but thinner than skimmed milk because it retains some of the original components.

Large factories and brands can monetize these byproducts by selling them to other companies or retail customers through their extensive supply chains. Small-scale farmers, however, often lack access to such networks, meaning their buttermilk is typically used as an ingredient for organic fertilizers or as feed for calves, offering no direct financial return.

Traditional Bilona Method of Ghee Production

Small-scale farmers often cannot afford the machinery required for large-scale cream separation or milk pasteurization. Instead, they produce ghee using the traditional Bilona method, which involves fermenting milk into curd, churning it by hand, and then heating the butter to make ghee. This labor-intensive process, often done in small batches, increases the cost of production but also provides employment, particularly to women.

The Bilona method is known for its rich flavor and nutritional benefits, but it is time-consuming and less efficient than modern methods, further driving up the cost of the ghee.

Conclusion

The higher price of Indigenous cow dairy products is not solely due to the breed of the cows. Several market, environmental, and economic factors contribute to the cost, making these products more expensive than those from large-scale, factory-based operations.

What We Do at Vivasayee’s Life

At iLink Farms, Sivasailam, only Indigenous cows, including breeds like Gir, Sahiwal, Vechur, and non-descript cows are raised. iLink Farms does not practice artificial insemination.

Our cows graze every day, and they are not feed grains. Instead, we supplement their diet with coconut meal and wheat bran, both of which are agricultural byproducts.

The cultured butter we produce has a rich and varied flavor profile due to lacto-fermentation. We sell this butter locally, as it has a short shelf life and needs to be consumed quickly. The buttermilk byproduct is used to make fertilizers for our coconut grove, with some sold to a local shop in Kadayam.

We churn our butter from curd using a slow churning machine rather than by hand, which helps keep our ghee prices lower than some other brands while maintaining high quality.

Regards

Sudhakar