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Banas Dairy, which started as a small co-op in the Indian state of Gujarat, has grown into the largest cooperative dairy in Asia, and possibly the largest integrated dairy in the world. Some 450,000 small farms in the region—including one with thirty head in the village of Dhanpura —own around 1.6 million cows and buffaloes. They bring 2.6 to 5.3 gallons of milk each day into a network of collection centers scattered around the region, like the one seen here in Thavar, near the Rajasthan border. The milk is collected by tanker truck and taken to the main processing center in Palanpur or to plants in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh by twice-weekly milk train. In total, Banas processes 2 million gallons of milk products each day, sold under the Amul brand. Farmers get more than 80 percent of the retail price. Co-op members can even sell their manure to the Banas dairy biodigester, which turns the waste into compressed natural gas for vehicles.

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Banas Dairy, which started as a small co-op in the Indian state of Gujarat, has grown into the largest cooperative dairy in Asia, and possibly the largest integrated dairy in the world. Some 450,000 small farms in the region—including one with thirty head in the village of Dhanpura —own around 1.6 million cows and buffaloes. They bring 2.6 to 5.3 gallons of milk each day into a network of collection centers scattered around the region, like the one seen here in Thavar, near the Rajasthan border. The milk is collected by tanker truck and taken to the main processing center in Palanpur or to plants in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh by twice-weekly milk train. In total, Banas processes 2 million gallons of milk products each day, sold under the Amul brand. Farmers get more than 80 percent of the retail price. Co-op members can even sell their manure to the Banas dairy biodigester, which turns the waste into compressed natural gas for vehicles.

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