Amul, the taste of India

This June, the Taste of India got the billion-dollar tag. What began as a dairy co-operative movement in the 1940s, has become the country's largest food business.

The white revolution has finally created a billion dollar brand, all thanks to some aggressive marketing by the dairy co-operative and the foresight of India's milkman Dr. Varghese Kurien, who created the Amul brand.

The last push to the celebrity mark has come after intelligent marketing of milk, ice cream & buttermilk. And all this by maintaining the marketing spend at just 1% of the total turnover.

The Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), an apex body of 13 milk co-operatives has clocked a turnover of Rs. 43 billion during fiscal 2006-07 to become a billion-dollar entity. The story gets bigger here.The ambitious federation has now set its eyes on the Rs. 100 billion mark over the next three years.It took four decades for Amul to become Rs. 20 billion entity, but the turnover doubled to over 43 billion within nine years from 1999 to 2007.

One of the most conservative FMCG entities GCMMF,spends a mere 1% of its turnover on promotions. GCMMF has re-written the rules of the games. Amul butter girl is one of the longest run ad campaigns in the country.The federation sold liquid milk worth Rs. 12 billion in fiscal 2006-07 & aims to cross Rs. 15 billion in 07-08. This performance is despite the stumbling exports during the previous fiscal following the Government's ban on exporting skimmed milk powder.

Amul, the movement that started in cash-rich Anand district of Gujarat in 1946 to empower farmers with two village co-operatives ad 250 litres of milk per day, is one of the most trusted food brands.

The above article appeared in the monthly newsletter of the High Commission of India here in Singapore (July 2007)