Understanding cattle feed cost in Indian dairies
Feed is the largest single expense for any dairy farmer — in most Indian small and medium dairies, it accounts for 55-70% of total operating cost. And unlike shed rent or labour, feed is variable — you pay more on days the animal produces more. That makes feed the most controllable lever in your profit equation.
The four components of a balanced dairy ration
- Dry fodder (straw, bhusa, hay) — provides roughage and fills the rumen. Cheap (₹6-10/kg) but low in nutrients. A lactating cow needs 4-7 kg per day.
- Green fodder (berseem, lucerne, maize, jowar) — the cheapest source of protein and vitamins. 15-30 kg per day per animal. Grow your own if you have land.
- Concentrate (khal, oilcake, cattle feed) — the protein and energy booster. Expensive (₹28-38/kg for a good brand) but directly fuels milk production. Use the 1-kg-per-2.5 L rule.
- Mineral mixture and vitamins — 50 g per day. Small cost, big impact on fertility and immunity. Never skip this.
The single most important number: feed cost per litre
If there is one number every dairy farmer should know by heart, it is feed cost per litre of milk. Healthy range:
- Crossbred cow: ₹18-24 per litre
- Desi cow (Gir, Sahiwal): ₹22-30 per litre (lower yield)
- Buffalo (Murrah, Mehsani): ₹22-28 per litre
If your feed cost per litre is above ₹30, something is wrong. Usually it is one of: concentrate over-feeding, buying poor-quality (“gone off”) feed cheap, or an animal with declining yield who should be dried off.
Example — Murrah buffalo: 6 kg dry fodder at ₹8 = ₹48, 25 kg green fodder at ₹3 = ₹75, 5 kg concentrate at ₹34 = ₹170, 60g minerals at ₹0.30 = ₹18. Total ₹311/day. At 10 L/day milk, feed cost per litre = ₹31.1/L. Verdict: slightly over-fed concentrate. Drop to 4 kg concentrate, save ₹34/day = ₹12,410/year per animal.
How to cut feed cost without losing yield
- Match concentrate to actual yield. Use the 1-kg-per-2.5 L rule religiously. Weigh what you give — don’t eyeball it.
- Grow your own green fodder. 0.5 acre of berseem can feed 5 cows for half the year at a third of the market price.
- Buy concentrate in 50 kg bags, not 10 kg. Saves 10-15%.
- Chop and mix (TMR-style). Reduces selective eating waste by 15-20%.
- Rotate fodder crops to get year-round supply — berseem in winter, lucerne in summer, maize in monsoon.