The introduction of low-fat milk by Aavin has received lukewarm response from consumers in Tiruchi.
Milk with 4.5% fat content has been in the market for several years. The milk marketed in green packets was popular among the consumers. However, Aavin decided to phase out the green packet milk in the State and began marketing milk with 3.5% fat content in many parts of the State in the second week of February. Aavin began marketing the milk in purple packets under the name of Delite on March 6. It started marketing the variant in a full-fledged manner from March 16.
But the milk with low fat content has not gone down well with the consumers. While expressing disappointment over the non-availability of milk with 4.5% fat content, many say the Delite milk is not of good quality. Despite reducing fat content, the price of the milk has not been reduced.
“We find the milk in purple packets to be of inferior quality. We are not happy with it. Where was the need for Aavin to promote milk in new formula by phasing out the most popular variant,” asks S. Shakthivel of Cantonment, a regular consumer of Aavin milk for more than 20 years.
It is said that a section of consumers, which did not accept the new variant, has switched over to milk vendors who supply non-pasteurised milk at the doorstep of the consumers.
“There are consumers who are unhappy over the reduction in fat content. However, loyal customers of Aavin continue to buy its products,” says Johnson, a grocery merchant, in Cantonment.
Sources in Tiruchi Aavin said the reduction in fat content was done to improve the quality and health benefits of the consumers. It was not aimed at reducing the cost of production. It was selling about 1.5 lakh litres of milk in various variants. There has been no change in the volume of milk. The sales went down by just 2,000 litres of milk.
The Tiruchi District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union was the last one to introduce reduced fat content milk. However, the milk with 4.5% fat content is still available in the market but at a higher price of ₹47 a litre.
