Now 'India-style' milk delivery to your doorstep amid coronavirus crisis

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Diljot Singh, an employee of Kisaan Dairy delivering a packet of milk to a customer. Source: Supplied

A Punjabi duo in regional Victoria has come up with an alternative supply mechanism for milk at this time when usual grocery shopping has become just about as restricted as have the items in supermarkets, no thanks to the coronavirus.


Highlights
  • Kisaan Dairy processes milk in their plant at Shepparton
  • Pasteurised cream-on-top milk is delivered to the doorsteps of customers
  • Only Melbourne's northern and western suburbs are being serviced at the moment
With coronavirus-related limits put on the number of items people can buy in supermarkets, and cancellation of online orders except for those vulnerable and isolated, staple foods like milk can often cause people to rush to the shops every other day. This is especially true for large families, particularly with children.

To address this market gap, Kisaan Dairy, a milk processing plant based in Shepparton, some 200 km from Melbourne, has changed track from supplying milk to restaurants and Indian sweet shops to making this much-loved staple available to Indian families in the state’s capital.

Run by two friends, Surinder Singh and Jaspreet Singh, this dairy business procures fresh milk from dairy farms in and around Shepparton and processes it in their plant locally. 


Unhomogenised pasteurised milk is then delivered twice a week to customers in Melbourne.
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Diljot Singh (left) with Surinder Singh. Source: Supplied
“Before coronavirus-related restrictions, we were focussed on supplying large quantities of milk to mainly Indian restaurants and mithai (Indian sweets) shops in Melbourne’s north and west like Wallan, Beveridge, Craigieburn, Tarneit, Werribee etc. But now since these are mostly closed, we have begun to address domestic demand,” says Surinder Singh.

Till February, they supplied milk in 20-litre plastic bags to commercial customers only. But now, the dairy has begun selling it in 10 litres bags because their customers are essentially households.

A 10-litre bag of pasteurised cream-on-top milk is sold for $15.50. No delivery fee is charged.

“Most Indians, especially Punjabis, consume milk in large quantities. Buying two or three-litre bottles in restricted numbers is not viable for them,” he adds.

However, he claims that the demand for their product has significantly gone up.

Most of their orders still come through their Facebook page or their phones and word of mouth publicity is significantly propelling their business.

“We have seen a 200 per cent growth rate in demand in about two weeks’ time,” Mr Singh says, adding that the dairy is very careful about not leaving customers dissatisfied.

“Honestly, we weren’t equipped to service such a large number of customers before the coronavirus hit. But when demand kept pouring in via Facebook and phone, we hurriedly had to get a website created but that is also a work in progress as our developers are based in India, which is in lockdown,” Mr Singh elaborates.

Slowly, as their capacity to meet the growing demand builds up, Mr Singh says, the business will expand its delivery area.
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Business as usual at Kisaan Dairy. Source: Supplied
“We are getting a lot of enquiries from Melbourne’s southeast. But logistically, we are unable to supply to that part of Melbourne at the moment. Hopefully soon,” he says.

The dairy prides itself on the quality of its product, which Mr Singh believes is another reason behind the sudden spike in demand.

“Indians, especially Punjabis are used to getting milk in open vessels from which malai (cream) can be separated after boiling and cooling it. That’s not possible with most of the bottled milk available in supermarkets because it is usually homogenised. But with Kisaan Dairy’s unhomogenised milk, you can not only get malai but also a flavour of Punjab in Australia,” Mr Singh says dreamily.

 

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Coronavirus symptoms can range from mild illness to pneumonia, according to the Federal Government's website. Symptoms can include a fever, coughing, sore throat, fatigue and shortness of breath.

If you develop symptoms within 14 days of returning from overseas, you should call to seek medical attention.

If you don’t have symptoms but you have been in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case, you should also call to seek medical attention.

If you believe you may need to get tested, call your doctor, don’t visit. Or contact the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.

If you are struggling to breathe or experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.

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