Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on household consumption pattern of dairy products in India

Income loss, fear of infection and movement restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic not only altered the amount and pattern of spending but also changed the shopping behaviour of the consumers. In the case of food commodities, dairy products seem to be more susceptible to such changes owing to their perishability and comparatively higher income elasticity. However, there were also some speculations that household dairy consumption in India might have increased during lockdown due to greater number of meals at home and immunity boosting qualities of milk. Any change in dairy consumption in India has a direct bearing on household nutritional security. The present study attempts to capture the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on household consumption pattern of dairy products across geographical regions and income class on the basis of a pan-India survey covering around 1000 households. Data was analysed using tabular analysis, frequency analysis and paired t-test. The results revealed that there was a significant decline in the household consumption of milk, paneer, butter and ice-cream during lockdown whereas no significant change was observed in the consumption of ghee, curd and buttermilk. The fall in consumption was comparatively higher in the milk deficit eastern zone and among the lowest income quintile which indicates that external support is required by the marginalized section during such crisis for ensuring the nutritional security. Moreover, a shift was also observed towards packaged products and online delivery services which can be further boosted for strengthening organized dairy sector.