Why is ghee costing more? Indian dairies have a big fat problem

Learn the stated distinction and keep the two meanings separate. India today faces a shortage not of milk as much as fat. Milk has two primary solids components: Fat and SNF or solids-not-fat.

Check the reported status and any stated limitations; do not assume an outcome beyond the source.

Use the stated distinction to avoid mixing up different meanings. Butter has 82% fat content, while SMP has 95-97% SNF by weight. Between October 2023 and October 2026, the average ex-dairy price of butter has risen by 54.3%, from Rs 348 to Rs 537 per kg.

• That rate is expected to fall 2.5% (to 222 mt) in 2026 and 2% (to 226.5 mt) in 2027, with the agency attributing the growth slowdown to “tightening feed and fodder supplies and animal productivity” from El Niño-induced drought in key producing states. • During 2024-25 and 2025-26, India exported 56,578.64 tonnes and 37,167.33 tonnes of ghee, butter and anhydrous milk fat, valued at Rs 2,663.05 crore and Rs 2,034.78 crore, respectively. • “The price inflation in fat is also due to the falling contribution of buffaloes to national milk production.