Karan Fries: New Indian Cow Breed Delivers Up to 46.5 Kg Milk a Day
India registers Karan Fries cow breed yielding 11-19 kg milk daily.
In a landmark development for Indian dairying, the National Dairy Research Institute (NDRI), Karnal, has introduced the synthetic Karan Fries cow, a breed that combines high milk productivity with exceptional adaptability. Crossbred from Holstein Friesian and the indigenous Tharparkar cattle, Karan Fries represents a major step forward in creating cows suited to India’s agro-climatic conditions.
Karan Fries cows produce an average of 3,550 kg of milk per lactation, roughly 11–12 kg per day, with top performers yielding up to 5,851 kg in 305 days, or about 19 kg daily. Remarkably, the breed has achieved a peak daily yield of 46.5 kg, doubling the average production of India’s native cattle, which usually produce just 3–4 kg per day.
The breed’s development is the result of over four decades of rigorous research and selective breeding by ICAR-NDRI scientists. After several generations of inter se breeding, Karan Fries has been genetically stabilized, combining the high milk output of Holstein Friesian cows with the resilience and heat tolerance of Tharparkar cattle.
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Alongside Karan Fries, ICAR recently registered 16 new livestock and poultry breeds, including the high-yielding Vrindavani cow, indigenous cattle like Medini and Rohikhandi, buffalo varieties such as Melghati, and several poultry and waterfowl species. These registrations bring India’s total to 246 officially recognized breeds, with 242 indigenous and 4 synthetic.
Dr. Dheer Singh, director of ICAR-NDRI, highlighted that Karan Fries is ideal for India’s hot and humid subtropical regions, while Dr. Vikas Vohra, head of the Animal Genetics and Breeding Division, confirmed the breed’s uniformity in production traits and suitability as foundation stock for future crossbreeding programs.
Currently, Karan Fries cows are being distributed across Haryana districts including Karnal, Kurukshetra, Panipat, Kaithal, Jind, and Yamuna Nagar, offering farmers an opportunity to significantly boost milk production and strengthen India’s dairy sector.
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