Consumption Pattern of Milk and Milk Products: An Analytical Approach to Kerala State, India

Milk and milk products have an important place in the dietary regimen of human beings due to health benefits. The consumers in urban areas of Kerala spent more on milk and milk products than their rural counter parts. The inequality in consumption of milk and milk products in Kerala was marginally higher for rural consumers than that of their urban counterparts as revealed by the Gini coefficients and Lorenz curves, indicating that the expenditure on milk and milk products was more unevenly distributed among the rural population. The expenditure on cereals and millets, expenditure on pulse and pulse products, expenditure on fruits and vegetables and total expenditure were found to have positive and significant influence on expenditure on milk and milk products in Kerala. Expenditure on egg, fish and meat and expenditure on other foods including oils and fats were found to have significant negative influence on expenditure on milk and milk products.

Dr.M. Krishnadas is a faculty of Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur, India. He is specialized in Agricultural Production Economics, International Trade, Consumer Economics and Development Policy Analysis. He has published books and several research articles.Dr.P.K. Dixit is Principal Scientist at ICAR-NDRI, SRS, Bengaluru.