India’s Milk Production: How Much We Produce, Who Produces It, And Who Actually Gets It

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TL;DR India produced about 248 million tonnes of milk in 2024–25, up from 210 million tonnes in 2020–21, an increase of roughly 18% in four years. Per capita milk availability also rose, from 427 grams per person per day to 485 grams, about a 13.6% rise. But production growth is not the same as access. A few states like Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana enjoy very high availability, while several states in the east and northeast remain far below the national average. Five states, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, account for more than half of India’s milk output. Most of this milk now comes from cows, with buffaloes still very important in northern and western states and goat milk playing a small but key role in a few regions.

Context
Milk is part of daily life in India. It is in morning tea, curd, paneer, sweets and many other foods. Behind that glass of milk is a huge production system spread across crores of small farmers. The recently released Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics 2025 report gives the latest picture of how much milk India produces, how that has changed over time, and how much milk is actually available per person.

Who Compiles This Data?
The data comes from the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. Its Animal Husbandry Statistics Division runs the Integrated Sample Survey (ISS) every year in rural and urban areas across all states and Union Territories to estimate the production of milk, eggs, meat and wool.

Where can I download Clean & Structured Data on Milk Production?
Clean, structured, and ready-to-use datasets related to the total milk production, per capita availability of milk, milk production by different species and breeds and many more can be downloaded from Dataful.

Key Insights

India’s milk production has grown by about 18% in 4 years
India’s total milk production increased from about 210 million tonnes in 2020–21 to about 248 million tonnes in 2024–25. This is a growth of roughly 18% over four years. Year on year, production grew by around 5 to 6% in the early years and about 3 to 4% in recent years. On average, India is adding close to 9 to 10 million tonnes of milk every year.

Five states produce more than half of India’s milk
Milk production in India is not evenly spread. In 2024–25, five states accounted for a little over 54% of India’s total milk output:

Zone-wise patterns also show clear clusters. The North and West zones (with states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Maharashtra) dominate total production. The South (Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala) also produces a large volume, but is still below the North and West combined. The East and Northeast regions have much lower production compared to their population.

This concentration means that changes in policies, climate or fodder availability in a few key states can significantly affect India’s overall milk supply.

Per capita milk availability is rising, but growth slower than production
Per capita availability of milk in India rose from 427 grams per person per day in 2020–21 to 485 grams per person per day in 2024–25. This is an increase of 58 grams per person per day, or about 13.6% in four years. Compare this with the production growth of 18% in the same period. The difference is because of the population growth. In simple terms, India is producing more milk, but it is also feeding more people. So, per person availability grows, but at a slower rate than production.

Some states have plenty of milk, others get much less
The average Indian had 485 grams of milk available per day in 2024–25, but this hides very big differences between states.

High availability states include:

StatePer Capita Availability of Milk (g/day)
Punjab1,318
Rajasthan1,229
Haryana1,128
Gujarat730
Andhra Pradesh716

On the other hand, several states fall in the low availability group:

StatePer Capita Availability of Milk (g/day)
Delhi52
Arunachal Pradesh46
Manipur41
Lakshadweep17
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu4

This means that a person in Punjab may have almost 20 times the milk access of someone in a low availability state. High production states do not always line up with high availability. So even though India as a whole has 485 g/day per person, your daily glass of milk looks very different depending on whether you are in, for example, rural Punjab or in a small town in Lakshadweep.

Cows now produce more than half of India’s milk
India’s species-wise milk production has grown steadily over the last five years. Between 2020–21 and 2024–25, cattle milk rose from about 108 million tonnes to 133 million tonnes, buffalo milk increased from about 95 million tonnes to 107 million tonnes, and goat milk grew from roughly 7–8 million tonnes to above 8 million tonnes. This gradual rise means that cows now contribute a little over half of India’s total milk, a share that has increased each year as cattle output expands faster than buffalo and goat output.

Buffalo milk is vital in states like Haryana, Delhi, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh, accounting for over half of their milk supply due to preference and its use in high-fat products like paneer and ghee.

Cow milk dominates in the South, East, and Northeast (Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, West Bengal, Ladakh, and most northeastern states), often because buffalo populations are smaller.

Lakshadweep is a major exception, with nearly 88% of milk from goats. Nationally, goat milk is a small share but is crucial in islands, dry, and hilly regions where goats are better suited than cattle or buffaloes.

How much milk do cows, buffaloes and goats produce?
In 2024–25, cattle produced the largest share of India’s milk, followed closely by buffaloes. The all-India distribution shows:

This breakdown makes one thing clear: crossbred cows and indigenous buffaloes are the backbone of India’s milk supply, with goats contributing a small but steady share in certain regions.

Why Does It Matter?
Milk is not just a statistic. It is a daily source of protein, fat and micronutrients for millions of people, and a daily source of income for millions of small farmers. The numbers show three important things:

For policymakers, this means focusing not only on higher production but also on fair access and sustainable, animal-friendly growth. For ordinary people, it means that the glass of milk on the table is part of a much larger story of farms, animals and choices made at the state and national level.

Key Numbers (from 2020-21 to 2024-25)