Goat Milk Market: Understanding Present and Future Prospects

We all know that milk and milk products are the essential food items of human beings, supplying adequate nutritional supplements, especially to the children. The country's estimated milk production for 2010-11 stood at 121 million tonnes, close to 17% of the world's milk production. India’s milk production in the current year is projected to reach 195 MMT. There has been a significant jump of approximately 62% production in 10 years. At present India is the world's largest milk producer, with 22 percent of global production, followed by the United States of America, China, Pakistan and Brazil. The per capita availability has sharply increased from 225 gm per day in 2003-04 to 375 gm per day in 2017-18 was 375 gm/day and by 2023-24, it is estimated to increase to 592 gm/day.  

The year 2019 saw paradigm shift in the milk consumption in India and it was a sort of milk revolution since the consumer started looking for alternative products, other than cow or buffalo milk, to camel milk, goat milk, and even donkey milk. Demand for goat milk has increased the most in recent years amongst alternative for cow or buffalo milk. Despite not being as popular as cow milk, goat milk has various benefits and nutritional values that cow's milk lacks. Therefore demand for goat milk is rising gradually in the country. In present term goat's milk is also used to make a variety of dairy products like cow milk. India ranked number one producer of goat milk in the world and in 2017, the estimated production was roughly 50 Lakh metric tonnes. The global goat milk market size was valued at $8.5 billion in 2018, and is expected to reach $11.4 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 3.8% from 2019 to 2026.  

Benefits of Goat Milk Consumption: 

Appearance and taste wise, goat milk is a white, opaque liquid with a slightly sweet taste but without   odor. Most of the Goat milk produced goes for direct human consumption. Rest is used in production of cheese, milk powder, and other products. Consumption of goat milk or the processed products has lots of advantages, as proved scientifically. It is the rich source of protein, calcium, fats, vitamins, iron, and other essential nutrients as compared to cattle milk. It helps to improve platelet count in the blood during dengue and other viral diseases. Since the milk is rich in calcium content, it has a role to play in strengthening of bones and teeth. For a growing baby, it is one of the best sources of energy.  

Why Choose Goat Milk over Cow Milk  

As internet penetration is increasing and media awareness campaigns are improving majority of India’s population is becoming increasingly aware that cows’ milk may not be suitable for some. Therefore, need to seek other alternatives, which are better linked to our body requirements, have increased in recent years. On nutrition terms goats' milk is considered almost same as cows' milk but it differentiates in having certain physical properties, influential for human digestibility and health. Many people who face symptoms like eczema; asthma, gas related trouble, constipation or digestive discomfort consuming cows' milk can prefer goats' milk since consumption of goat milk reduces these problems to a great extent. Number of studies on this has been done and similar conclusions have been derived from these studies or experiments.  

Scientific studies also reveal that goat milk causes less inflammation in the stomach unlike the cow’s milk. The milk is healthy for the heart and lowers chances of acquiring heart diseases like heart attack and atherosclerosis. There is good percentage of proteins available in goat milk, essential for promoting growth and development. Goat milk contains much more calcium than any other type of milk that is ideal for strong bones. The milk also has essential vitamins and minerals (and higher amounts of potassium, iron and vitamin A, than cows’ milk therefore it is highly nutritious for an entire family.  

Demand prospects for Goat Milk remain bright  

Demand for goat milk and milk products for internal consumption and export is expected to rise in coming years. Product wise goat milk is processed in manufacturing cheese, milk powder etc. In 2019, goat milk was the leading segment in the global market, owing to direct consumption. Also, governments of various countries are announcing lots of measures in order to scale up the dairy sector growth. As an example, the government of India offers subsidy amount from 25% to 35% of the total cost of purchase of goats. This move is to develop the goat farm industry, necessary for boosting growth of the goat milk market.  

Rise in Internet usage has enhanced consumer awareness regarding importance of goat milk in recent years, and there are more number health conscious people in the country – be it young or old. Since digestibility is better and essential elements are available in sufficient percentage, demand for goat milk is increasing year after year. As compared with cow milk, consumers of the present world seem quite interested towards better, healthier alternatives such as camel milk, goat milk or donkey milk. Reports say that in next few years, products such as goat milk ghee will be attracting more number of users.  There is renewed focus on healthy living, and customer spending habits are also changing. Surveys and reports indicate that willingness to spend more on a product like goat milk, has increased considering health benefits. Therefore demand potential for goat milk or its products, is bound to improve in years to come.