The Great Indian Milk Opportunity For Pharma

MILK IS AN INTERESTING MARKET FULL OF POSSIBILITIES FOR PHARMA AND HEALTHCARE MARKETERS, PLEASE READ BELOW FOR SOME INSIGHTS, AND I GOT THE ABOVE IMAGE FROM HERE, CLICK HERE (the link discusses on 'organic milk').

INDIA IS THE LARGEST PRODUCER OF MILK IN THE WORLD. THE PACKAGED MILK BUSINESS IS HAVING AN ANNUAL TURNOVER OF AROUND Rs. 10000 CRORES! WE PRODUCE OVER 100 MILLION TONNES OF MILK, REPRESENTING AROUND 15% OF THE WORLD'S PRODUCTION. CAN THE PHARMA AND HEALTHCARE MARKETERS OF INDIA CASH IN ON THIS 'MILK OPPORTUNITY'?

Milk has a legendary status in India. Lord Krishna liked milk and milk products especially in his infant days. Milk is seen as manna from heaven. Warriors, wrestlers, and even Dhoni the charismatic and dashing cricketer, drink a lot of milk. Dhoni, it is rumored, drinks at least 1 litre of milk a day. Kids, the aged, the working class, and just about everybody consume milk. In fact, juice drinking culture is not the mass culture in India (as it is in the West). Consumption of milk and milk based products is the mass culture and has a high consumption pattern in Indian society and culture. Due to these cultural reasons, patient/consumer compliance and delight can be expected to be higher with milk and milk based pharma products and health supplements.

Milk as a vehicle provides exciting opportunities for strengthening nutrition, health, and healing.

Value added products derived from milk with special interest in pharma and health supplement business include:

Whey protein: is the best source of protein. In India, protein malnourishment is quite common. Whey protein has the highest biological value of any known protein. The biological value of a protein food, is the measure of how much protein gets incorporated in to the body. Higher the BV more the proteins from the food gets incorporated in to body's protein. Whey protein has a BV (biological value) of 106 to 150, egg whites have lesser BV of 100 BV - Whey protein BV is the highest for any protein food - no wonder in Indian traditions, the cow has a hallowed status... you see... Whey protein is derived from cow's milk, in fact, it is a by product of cheese manufactured from cow's milk. The globular proteins from whey protein are easily assimilated in the body particularly in the muscles. Hence, body builders too prefer whey protein based supplements.

Milk calcium (milk mineral complex): is a source of calcium derived from milk. In fact, it is more properly called milk mineral complex. This is a concentrate of minerals present in milk. Calcium is in the highest proportion. Milk calcium is also a whey by-product. Patient acceptance of milk calcium is obviously high - due to a positive image, hence, there are labelling advantages. Along with calcium, milk calcium offers magnesium, and the calcium to phosphorous ratio too is beneficial. Milk calcium has a mineral composition similar to bones CLICK HERE.

Probiotic/prebiotic enhanced milk-derived products: Yogurt is a billion dollar business worldwide, and it is promoted as a healthy probiotic based drink. Yakult is the prime mover in this business. Yogurt is not a product of rocket science. It is a custard like food made from curdled milk. Yakult is trying to make its inroads in to the Indian market. And this in a country which is not a stranger to milk and milk based products. Yakult yogurt is a value added product derived from milk, and such a product is definitely possible for Indian manufacturers to manufacture. Yakult (or can we call it mishti dahi!?) is a Japanese doctor's invention. It uses Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. The reason that Yakult makes waves is the fact that it addresses the large gastrointestinal market. In fact, in India, 1/3rd of the Pharma market is gastrointestinal. Electrolyte energy drinks and other products too address the large gastrointestinal market (info@jagdale.com). Similar to probiotic based milk products, prebiotic (FOS) based milk products are also doing good business globally. This clinical trial established that prebiotic and probiotic milks have good impact on pediatric health. (In this clinical trial there is also a lucid explanation on what probiotics and prebiotics are). There is good scope for such products in India too.

Colustrum: is the first secretion from female mammals immediately after birth of baby, for the first 2 to 4 days. It is a rich source of nutrients, antibodies, immunoglobulins, and growth factors. Bovine colustrum derived from cattle - it can be consumed by humans, and improves immunity, growth, and overall health. Merck in India is a lead player in the colustrum market.

Milk based vaccination: is an interesting concept being worked on by certain researchers. For eg., Immunization against malaria through milk, has been experimented upon CLICK HERE. Probably there will be biotech milks in the future with distinct therapeutic benefits like vaccination. Some marketers, call colustrum as nature's vaccination approach.

Milk based pharmaceuticals/nutraceuticals: imagine a Calcium Sandoz brand line extension in liquid milk form (offering vitamin D and calcium as milk mineral complex 50 to 100% RDA) - there you have a very big market that can ride on the Rs. 10000 crore milk market! Or ‘Shelcal milk’ from Elder Pharmaceuticals. If nanotech is used it is possible to mask taste and provide antibiotic-based milk preparations for specific uses in disease conditions. Thus, milk based pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals are possible in the future.

Fortified milk products: The world-over fortification is a mass approach to improve nutritional status of target populations. For eg., iodized salt is mass consumed in India, to improve thyroid health. Milk presents a great opportunity for vitamin and mineral fortification to provide healthy beverages to target populations.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING IN THE FUTURE?

World’s largest producer of whey protein: India
World’s largest producer of milk mineral complex: India
World's largest producer of colustrum: India
World’s largest producer of fortified milks: India
World’s innovator of vaccination through milk: India
World’s innovator of milk based pharmaceuticals/nutraceuticals: India

Yes it is possible...

HOW TO MAKE THIS HAPPEN?

This is possible through COLLECTIVE INNOVATION AND GENERIC MARKETING. THE SECOND FACTOR IS THE MOST CRITICAL FACTOR. BAD MARKETING CAN BURY MANY A GOOD PRODUCT. PRODUCT INNOVATION SHOULD BE BACKED BY MARKETING OR INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS WILL FACE MARKET FAILURE. (Generic marketing means nonbrand marketing, see below.)

The best marketing approaches can be worked out through studying established marketing models for other products. For instance look at this approach of the olive producers of European Union. The stakeholders as you will observe by clicking on the hyperlink, have formed an International Olive Council in Madrid, this non profit body has the sole objective of launching promo campaigns in high potential markets like India, and increase the consumption of olive oil. These are generic promotional activities. By this marketing activity, all stakeholders in the olive oil business, stand to gain. And more wealth will be created for the olive oil stakeholders. This is the way of business. And we can take a leaf from this olive oil story to create an organization to popularize Indian milk and particularly milk derived products of interest to pharma and healthcare marketers.

What will happen if we do not take the lead in creating value added products through milk, in India? The answer is somebody else will do it and take advantage of the home market in India and abroad. For eg., the French and the Danish are having a great run in the Chinese market by planting the probiotic concept. CLICK HERE. The no. 1 probiotic product in the huge Chinese market for kids is a sachet product from the French company Biostime. Similarly, the humble Indian gooseberry (Amla, Phyllanthus emblica) is powering ahead the American company called Natreon. This company too is developing a science-based promotion of their brand of an amla based product. Merck in the Indian market is said to having an interest to launch an amla based product.

Business is like a war – healthcare or other business operations are always run for gaining markets and profits. Earlier military wars used to be fought for gaining geographical territories (geographical expansion), and filling up the treasury of the country. Today, the fashion of war is different – it is called business. Products are offered and markets conquered with the intent of filling the corporate war chests with more and more cash. EITHER PLAY THE BUSINESS BY ITS RULES (UNWRITTEN OR WRITTEN) OR GET PLAYED OUT! SO WILL PHARMA AND HEALTHCARE MARKETERS BANK ON THE INDIAN MILK MARKET? LET US WAIT AND WATCH!!

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