December 31: Dairy products produced across the country make up nine percent of the country's GDP, according to a report presented at the 20th general assembly of Nepal Dairy Association which concluded recently in Birendrangar. 
The state-run Rastriya Samachar Samiti (RSS) reported that the domestic dairy industries pay a total revenue of Rs one billion annually to the government. The association said that rural areas supply milk worth Rs 30 million on a daily basis to the urban areas.  

It was said at the AGM that the country produces five million litres of milk on a daily basis out of which the producers themselves consume 50 percent of the production. 
The people associated with the dairy business complain that despite a valuable contribution to the GDP, the dairy business is yet to get its due recognition from the state. 

General secretary of the association, Prahlad Dahal, said that around 500,000 families are associated with the dairy industry and over 30,000 people are directly employed by the industry. According to RSS, Dahal expressed his concern over the government decision to withdraw the 50 percent VAT exemption given to dairies, thus making them hard to compete with imported products. 

However, the situation of dairy business in the Karnali Province is not encouraging. The association claimed that the production at the province level is 50 percent insufficient to meet the internal demand.