Located in the lush greenery of Manchar, a small village in Maharashtra, is one of India’s largest cow farms and one of Asia’s largest cheese plants owned by Parag Milk Foods. Devendra Shah, chairman of Parag Milk Foods, talks about his vision that revolutionised the Indian dairy industry and his prospective plans for the company By Rituparna Chatterjee

India has always held the position of being the world’s largest milk producer and consumer of dairy products. According to Dairy Universe INDIA, the country accounts for more than 16 per cent of the world’s total milk production, which has tripled from 23 million tonnes in 1973 to 95 million tonnes in 2008. In 2015, India is expected to produce 135 million tonnes. Changing demographics, increasing per capita income and growing awareness about healthy eating have been few drivers for the dairy industry’s accelerated growth. Making a significant contribution to India’s dairy landscape since 1992, has been Parag Milk Foods. The company has a wide product portfolio including skimmed milk powder, whole milk powder, ghee, processed cheese, butter, curd, dairy whitener and gulab jamun mix, which are sold under the brand names of ‘Gowardhan’, ‘Go’ and ‘Pride of Cows’. Apart from having a diverse product range, this ISO 9000 and AGMARK certified company has also prided itself for owing one of India’s largest cow farms and one of Asia’s largest cheese plants in a small village called Manchar in Maharashtra. Sharing his vision behind the starting of the company, Devendra Shah, chairman, Parag Milk Foods states, “My vision has been to establish a prominent F&B player in the market that is trusted by all stakeholders. Being an Indian brand we provide an experience that is truly international and also support milk farmers in their living.”

Innovation first

Investment in infrastructure and technology is pivotal for manufacturing quality products and bringing about innovation. Parag Milk Foods’ integrated dairy and cow farm at Manchar has been doing just that to cater to an expanding and demanding circle of customers in India and abroad. Spread over 35 acres, the Bhagyalaxmi Dairy Farm, boasts of being one of India’s largest cow farms. It houses up to 2500 cows and is equipped with one of India’s first rotary parlours to mechanise the entire milking process. This facility also has a specialised farming, nurturing, breeding and milking programme to ensure and maintain the highest quality of milk. This farm is mainly engaged in the production of the company’s premium, farm-to-home milk called the Pride of Cows. In addition to the Bhagyalaxmi Dairy Farm, the company’s second dairy farm is in Andhra Pradesh.


Apart from collecting milk from the cows in the farm, the company has also been sourcing milk from the local farmers as part of the company’s social initiative. This has helped Parag Milk Foods in increasing its milk production and procurement capacity significantly. For instance, the company expanded its capacity from 5000 litres/day at the time of inception to 15000 litres/ day within the next three months and presently it handles around 12 lakh litres/day at the Manchar facility and 10 lakh litres/day at the Andhra Pradesh facility.

For the love of cheese

Parag Milk Foods sells its cheese under the brand name ‘Go’. The word ‘Go’ has been derived from Gowardhan and has a dual meaning – apart from resonating with the Sanskrit word for cow, it also embodies an energetic spirit with the act of going. Go Cheese is the largest product portfolio under the brand name Go. “We educate the consumer on having the right cheese in the right product; we in the past four years have reinvented the category and offered our consumers products which they have seen for the first time in India. Today’s consumers are experimental and want to try new products and services and this is where we come in. We launched India’s first shredded cheese, India’s first natural flavoured yogurt and India’s first cheese in tube format. Hence the consumers may perceive us to be a leader as far as innovation is concerned and this is where the edge lies,” advocates Shah.


The company’s cheese plant, located in Manchar, is one of Asia’s largest cheese plants having a production capacity of 40,000 tonnes/ day. It is one of the only two facilities in Asia having UHT technology. The equipment, imported from Stephan Machinery in Germany, allows the UHT treated cheese to be stored in ambient conditions without refrigeration up to a period of six months in tropical countries like India. Moreover, Parag Milk Foods is  one of the largest suppliers of cheese to hotels, restaurants, pizza chains, street food stalls in India. “We are also exporting to 33 countries worldwide including the Middle-East, North Africa and South-East Asia, etc,” mentions Shah.

Expansion mode

The company recently expanded its product portfolio by launching buttermilk and is working on producing whey protein powder. “The whey protein powder is a B2B business and has significant potential in India,” avers Shah. When asked about the future of the dairy industry in India, Shah predicts, “The milk and the dairy category in India is only growing. As the Indian economy is growing and consumers’ preference towards health and nutrition is increasing, milk is gradually playing an important role in everyone’s life. This is leading to a continuous increase in demand. The challenge therefore for any brand would be to increase their distribution, create value offerings for the consumers and constantly reinvent and innovate to create differentiators in the consumers’ mind.”