K Rathnam, CEO of Milky Mist Dairy Food
Chennai: Paneer remains the biggest growth engine for Milky Mist, which recently got listed, with the shift from loose, unbranded products to packaged offerings creating significant headroom for the Erode-based dairy company as it enters a Rs 1,000-crore-plus quarterly revenue trajectory. Milky Mist has the capacity to produce about 150 tonnes of paneer a day, which it says is the largest such capacity under one roof in India. Utilisation, however, is only around 50-60%, leaving room for growth without immediate capacity additions. The company estimates that 90%-94% of paneer production is still in the unorganised sector, with organised players accounting for only about 6%-7%. Milky Mist has around 20% of the organised market. The overall paneer market is worth about Rs 97,500 crore, with the organised segment accounting for only around 5%, according to estimates. The category is growing at roughly 20% annually, while the shift away from analogue paneer could push volume growth closer to 25%. Milky Mist’s paneer volumes are growing at 34%. Milky Mist estimates that the value-added dairy market is growing at 15%-18%, while its own value growth is around 35-38%. The company posted a net profit of Rs 65 crore in Q1FY27, compared with ₹7 crore in the year-ago quarter. Revenue grew 44% to Rs 973 crore from Rs 678 crore. The company expects to sustain growth of more than 30%, aided by capacity ramp-up, geographical expansion, deeper penetration in existing markets and a favourable product mix. Liquid milk accounts for about 65% of the Rs 21,318 billion Indian dairy market, while paneer accounts for about 4.6%, according to industry estimates. Yoghurt, ghee and ice cream account for 7%, 8% and 2.5% respectively.
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“Paneer will continue to be the star product for Milky Mist,” said K Rathnam, CEO of Milky Mist Dairy Food Ltd. “We are growing at more than twice the rate at which the paneer sector is growing,” he said. The company is now expanding into new markets across India to broaden its geographic presence, said a recent note by Crisil Ratings.
The opportunity could widen as food-safety authorities step up action against analogue paneer (paneer made with vegetable fats rather than milk fat), potentially accelerating the shift towards branded products. The broader shift towards protein-rich foods is also driving demand. The company sees momentum for other categories such as ice cream and yoghurt. Milky Mist enjoys a strong market position in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, backed by healthy brand recall and a diversified range of products comprising paneer, cheese, curd, ghee, ice creams, yoghurt, sweets and condensed milk, among others. Download the TOI App.