Job ID: 289390

Program Officer – Dairy Operations and Growth

CII - Food and Agriculture Center of Excellence

Location: Patna, Bihar

Apply by: 07 May 2026

Relevant Sectors

Administration, HR, Management, Accounting/Finance

Agriculture, Livelihoods, Microfinance, Rural, Urban

Capacity Building, Training, Advocacy

Program Officer – Dairy Operations and Growth

Location: Patna, Bihar

Program: Dairy Sector Programs (State & Multi-state)

Role Overview
The Program Officer - Dairy Operations and Growth will support strategic initiatives to expand milk procurement, support formation of new Dairy Cooperative Societies (DCSs), strengthen chilling and processing infrastructure, and improve milk productivity and quality systems.

This role requires a strong technical dairy background with hands-on understanding of milk processing, chilling operations, quality assurance, and value-added dairy product systems. The position will ensure alignment between procurement expansion, processing capacity, infrastructure planning, and commercial viability.

Roles & Responsibilities
1. Dairy Expansion & DCS Formation
• Support strategy and rollout for formation and operationalization of new Dairy Cooperative Societies (DCSs).
• Conduct feasibility assessments for new DCS locations based on milk potential, farmer density, and infrastructure access.
• Support farmer mobilization, registration, governance systems, and operational readiness.
• Establish procurement systems including milk testing protocols, quality-linked payments, and record management.
• Ensure long-term sustainability and institutional strengthening of newly formed DCSs.

2. Milk Procurement Growth & Aggregation Strategy
• Develop and implement strategies to increase milk procurement volumes across targeted geographies.
• Strengthen aggregation models through DCSs, FPOs/FPCs, cooperatives, and producer institutions.
• Identify and address operational bottlenecks in procurement, logistics, and quality systems.
• Align procurement growth with processing and market demand planning.
• Track procurement growth targets (LPD increase) and retention metrics.

3. Processing & Chilling Infrastructure Strengthening
• Assess infrastructure gaps in BMCUs, chilling centers, transportation networks, and dairy processing plants.
• Support expansion and optimization of chilling capacity in high-growth clusters.
• Improve plant utilization rates through procurement alignment and operational planning.
• Support feasibility analysis for new chilling units and processing capacity expansion.
• Ensure synchronization between upstream milk collection and downstream processing capacity.

4. Milk Productivity & Quality Systems
• Support implementation of productivity improvement interventions linked to aggregation strategy.
• Strengthen clean milk production practices at DCS and farmer level.
• Monitor milk quality parameters (fat, SNF, MBRT, adulteration control).
• Integrate quality assurance systems into procurement expansion models.

5. Value Addition & Commercial Strengthening
• Support scaling and optimization of value-added dairy products (VADPs) aligned with procurement growth.
• Strengthen product mix, yield optimization, and margin realization strategies.
• Ensure quality compliance and process standardization for VADP production.

6. Stakeholder Coordination
• Coordinate with Animal Husbandry Department, Dairy Development Department, Milk Federations, and district authorities.
• Engage with Milk Unions, dairy plants, cooperatives, infrastructure partners, and private processors.
• Facilitate review meetings, technical consultations, and coordination mechanisms.

7. Monitoring & Performance Analytics
• Track and report on:
1. Number of new DCSs formed and operationalized
2. Increase in milk procurement (litres per day)
3. Chilling and processing capacity utilization (%)
4. Milk quality improvements
5. Farmer participation and retention
• Develop dashboards and analytical reports for internal and donor reporting.
• Support data-driven decision-making for dairy expansion strategy.

Qualifications & Experience

Educational Qualification (Mandatory)
• Master’s or bachelor’s degree in Dairy Technology

Experience
• Minimum 7+ years of hands-on experience in dairy processing, milk procurement systems, chilling operations, or dairy plant management.
• Proven experience in:
1. Dairy plant operations (pasteurization, homogenization, standardization)
2. BMCU and chilling centre operations
3. Quality assurance systems (fat, SNF, adulteration control)
4. Procurement-linked processing scale-up
5. VADP production and process optimization
• Experience working with Milk Unions, dairy federations, or large-scale processing units preferred.

Core Technical Competencies
• Strong understanding of dairy plant operations.
• Experience in processing capacity planning and plant utilization optimization.
• Knowledge of cold-chain and chilling infrastructure management.
• Familiarity with FSSAI regulations and dairy compliance standards.
• Ability to integrate procurement growth with infrastructure and commercial planning.

Job Email ID:

kiran.kumari(at)cii.in