The primary reason $\text{New}$ $\text{Delhi}$ flatly rejected the $\text{US}$ demand was based on deeply rooted cultural and religious objections, particularly concerning the common $\text{American}$ agricultural practice of feeding cows animal-based products, such as blood meal or meat scraps. For the large vegetarian population in $\text{North}$ $\text{India}$, this practice renders the resulting product as “non-veg milk,” making it an “unacceptable contamination.” Given that milk holds a sacred status in religious rituals across the country, cultural identity became a non-negotiable factor in the dairy economics dispute. The economic stakes for dairy producers are equally massive. $\text{India}$’s dairy sector forms the backbone of rural livelihoods for over $\text{8}$ $\text{crore}$ farming $\text{households}$ and contributes $\text{5}$ $\text{per}$ $\text{cent}$ to the national economy. Economists project that unrestricted imports of cheaper, heavily subsidized $\text{American}$ milk could result in devastating annual losses of close to $\text{₹1}$ $\text{lakh}$ $\text{crore}$ for domestic producers. With almost $\text{99}$ $\text{per}$ $\text{cent}$ of $\text{Indian}$ farmers categorized as small or marginal producers, they cannot compete with $\text{US}$ agricultural giants that received more than $\text{\$20}$ $\text{billion}$ in subsidies in $\text{2022}$.

$\text{India}$‘s firm stance is backed by the transformative success of its domestic agribusiness policies and cooperative network. Initiatives like the $\text{Rashtriya}$ $\text{Gokul}$ $\text{Mission}$ have led to a bovine productivity jump of $\text{27.39}$ $\text{per}$ $\text{cent}$ between $\text{2014}$ and $\text{2022}$—the highest growth rate globally. The cooperative model, inspired by $\text{Amul}$, has expanded to include $\text{22}$ milk federations and $\text{241}$ $\text{district}$ $\text{unions}$, covering over $\text{2.35}$ $\text{lakh}$ $\text{villages}$ with $\text{1.72}$ $\text{crore}$ members.

The government is doubling down on this success with the launch of $\text{White}$ $\text{Revolution}$ $\text{2.0}$ in $\text{2024}$, which aims to increase cooperative milk procurement to $\text{1,007}$ $\text{lakh}$ $\text{kg}$ $\text{per}$ $\text{day}$ by $\text{2028}$–$\text{29}$, supported by a budget allocation of $\text{₹3,400}$ $\text{crore}$ for the revised $\text{Rashtriya}$ $\text{Gokul}$ $\text{Mission}$. For the $\text{US}$, the dispute was commercial, but for $\text{India}$, it represented a clash between market logic and the fundamental principles of cultural identity and food sovereignty. $\text{India}$ ultimately stood firm, leading to the $\text{US}$ imposing $\text{50}$ $\text{per}$ $\text{cent}$ $\text{tariffs}$ on $\text{Indian}$ exports, though trade has continued to thrive despite the tension.