akistan is at a critical crossroads in its fight against malnutrition and child stunting—one that demands decisive action, especially in the realm of food safety and nutritional access. With nearly 40.2 per cent of children under five suffering from stunting, as highlighted in the National Nutrition Survey 2018 conducted by UNICEF and the Government of Pakistan, it is evident that the nation is silently enduring a public health emergency. Stunting is not just a condition of poor growth—it is a chronic form of deprivation that reflects the long-term impact of inadequate nutrition, recurring infections and insufficient maternal and child care.
This crisis is not limited to low-income households. Stunting cuts across socioeconomic groups, affecting children in urban apartments as well as rural hamlets. It stifles cognitive development, reduces academic performance and limits future growth potential—thereby undermining the country’s economic prospects and human capital. If unaddressed, stunting today may become the poverty and productivity trap of tomorrow.
Milk, universally recognised as one of the most complete natural foods, is rich in calcium, protein, vitamins A, D, B12 and essential micronutrients. For children, it fuels physical growth and brain development. For adults, it supports bone health and immunity. But the kind of milk consumed is just as important as the act of consuming it. In Pakistan, the market constitutes two types of milk being sold to consumers — unsafe loose milk and safe packaged milk. Alarmingly, over around 95 per cent of milk sold in Pakistan is loose milk, with no regulatory oversight, quality assurance or cold-chain handling.
In a nationwide survey on milk quality and safety recently conducted by University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, 92 per cent of loose milk samples were non-compliant with quality and safety parameters; 54 per cent were found unfit for human consumption. This loose milk is often adulterated with water, detergents, harmful preservatives like formalin. It is sometimes contaminated with pathogens that can cause typhoid, TB, diarrhoea and hepatitis A. These are not just hygiene lapses—they are health time-bombs.
In contrast, packaged milk produced by regulated dairy companies undergoes rigorous testing, pasteurisation and quality control at every stage from farm to shelf. According to the World Health Organisation, pasteurisation is a proven method to eliminate pathogens and ensure microbiological safety. Choosing packaged milk is not just about convenience—it is about safe nutrition.
The transition from hazardous loose milk to safe, packaged milk is a strategic tool in tackling malnutrition and ensuring food security for all.
Sceptics often argue that packaged milk is unaffordable for the average Pakistani household. The reality is less simple. As per the National Health Accounts report, total health expenditure in Pakistan in the FY 2021-22 was estimated at Rs 1,962 billion. This showed an increase of Rs496 billion over the FY 2019-20, which was a 33.8 per cent increase in nominal terms. Such an increase can largely be referenced with preventable diseases linked to poor nutrition and food contamination. The price difference between loose and packaged milk is marginal when weighed against the long-term costs of poor health, missed school days and medical bills.
The informal dairy sector, which dominates Pakistan’s milk supply, remains largely unregulated and unchecked. It thrives on the absence of enforcement and public awareness. This is where policy intervention becomes not only relevant but absolutely essential. The government must urgently regulate and gradually phase out unsafe loose milk through quality inspections, licensing systems and stringent penalties for adulteration. At the same time, formal dairy players should be incentivised through tax benefits, subsidies and infrastructural support to expand their distribution networks into underserved areas.
Simultaneously, the government should launch a nationwide milk safety campaign that utilises schools, religious leaders, health workers and media platforms to promote safe milk consumption as a basic right and necessity. Additionally, milk should be integrated into school feeding programmes as part of a national nutrition strategy targeting children under five. These efforts must be designed not as isolated interventions but as a cohesive, cross-ministerial food safety agenda.
This is not just a matter of food policy—it is a national security imperative. A healthier, well-nourished generation is the foundation for economic growth, educational attainment, and social stability. The solution is within reach. Pakistan does not need to re-invent the wheel—it simply needs to scale up what already works. The transition from hazardous loose milk to safe, packaged milk is a strategic tool in tackling malnutrition and ensuring food security for all.
Let us not allow a glass of milk—meant to nourish—to become the source of illness and developmental loss. For the sake of our children’s future and the country’s progress, it is time to pour policy regulation, and awareness into every drop.
The writer, a communications expert, maintains a keen interest in matters related to public policy, health and the economy.
