Farm size and cooperative marketing raise dairy profits while constraints weigh unevenly across profit levels in Kerala India

Indian dairy farms exhibit marked heterogeneity in scale and the constraints they face. This study examines the additive effects of farm size while determining the association between these constraints and profitability, and whether cooperative marketing channels are positively linked to returns. Using household survey data from 384 dairy farmers across three districts of Kerala, India, we employ Ordinary Least Squares and Quantile Regression to examine heterogeneous effects across the distribution of profitability. The findings reveal that constraint effects vary systematically by profitability level. Feed price volatility is associated with lower profitability across all farms but shows the strongest negative association with low‑profit operations. High‑profit farms demonstrate greater sensitivity to output market fluctuations, whereas low‑profit farms face stronger socio‑familial constraints, notably unreliable family labor. Cooperative channel participation shows a robust positive association with profitability across all quantiles. These results indicate that farm size really matters for economic resilience and that uniform policies are unlikely to be effective. Hence, tailored interventions are needed to improve productivity and ensure equity in India’s dairy sector.