Agriculture is one of the essential pillars of the Indian economy. It is also the source of livelihood for more than 60% of people in India.
In the past, the strategy adopted for the growth of the agriculture sector predominantly focused on increasing the agricultural output and improving food security. After the adoption and implementation of the Green Revolution, the country was able to meet its demands and export to other countries. In 2018-2019, the share of the agriculture sector in total exports was 11.76%.
This strategy helped the country address the food shortage, but still, the condition of farmers has not improved. Although our agricultural output has increased, this production growth didn’t bring a similar change in the farmers’ income.
According to the report published by NITI Ayog on Doubling Farmers’ Income, around 22.5% of the farm households have income below the poverty line. This data was estimated by NITI Ayog based upon the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) data on Consumption Expenditure Survey for the year 2011-2012.
The 7-point strategy by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has given due importance to the adoption of new technologies in agriculture for achieving the set target.
What is Agritech?
The company that operates in this sector uses technology in agriculture. It could be in products, services, or an application that aims to improve yield, efficiency, and profitability.
According to the recent report published by NASSCOM, the following are the key points related to the Agritech sector:
- Agritech startups are growing at the rate of 25% year on year.
- India currently hosts more than 450 startups in the Agritech sector.
- This sector received $1b in funding between 2017 and 2020 and is estimated to develop a $30-$35 million market by 2025.
Agritech startups in India:
AgroStar
A Pune-based m-commerce startup is helping farmers win (HelpingFarmersWin) by providing a range of readily available Agri solutions. The platform offers agronomy advice coupled with service and Agri input products that significantly improve farmers’ productivity and income.
It currently operates in Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan and has over 5 Lakh farmers on its digital platform. Farmers can avail their solution with a simple “missed call” or with the help of their Android App.
NinjaCart
The Bengaluru-based startup is India’s largest B2B fresh produce supply chain company. They provided:
- A smoother and more efficient channel of communication between farmers and retailers.
- Thus providing benefits like less price to retailers.
- Increasing farmers’ income.
- Quality food for consumers.
Aibono
Aibono is credited for pioneering the seed-to-plate concept. It was founded in 2014 to assist farmers in increasing crop productivity while also selling their wares effieciently.
The company collects farm data using soil sensors, IoT devices, and imaging drones then transmits it to their cloud platform, which employs predictive analytics to assist farmers in making better agricultural decisions. Aibono has received $3.5 million in funding.
You can also check this out Top 10 Startup Ideas in India That Can Start from Scratch
With its disruptive Seed-to-PlateTM platform, AIBONO, India’s first AI-powered aggregator of fresh produce, is moving the $250 billion fruits and vegetable chain towards transformation.
By providing precise insights derived from AI and shared farm intelligence on what to produce and how to produce it, this empowers communities of farmers to achieve two times the yield, two times the income, and less than half the wastage as before, while also enabling retailers and consumers to source super fresh farm produce all year from a traceable aggregated basis.
