Farmers Fresh Zone, an agritech startup (1), has secured 3.5 crore INR in its latest funding round led by IAN Fund. With the new infusions, the total fundraises of the firm have crossed 6.5 crore INR.

The Kerala based company aims to unlock safe-to-eat fruits and vegetables free from pesticides directly from farmers. It has connected urban consumers with over 1500 farmers so far via its omnipresence. 

The Founding Partner of IAN Fund, Padmaja Ruparel, stated that Kerala’s startup ecosystem is flourishing. She gave the credit to efforts made by the Kerala Startup Mission of the state. Farm Fresh Zone is an example of the innovations in Indian agriculture. It will enable farmers to sell pesticide-free products to consumers at a reasonable price.

The Founder and CEO of Farmers Fresh Zone, Pradeep, also comes from an agricultural family. He realized that farmers need a marketplace to sell their products, such as fruits and vegetables, directly to consumers. It encouraged the software engineer to become an agri-entrepreneur and establish a startup in 2015. 

Farmers Fresh Zone to Fill the Gap Between Farmers and Consumers

The startup has embraced a two-pronged approach to fill the gap between the two. The firm claims to be one of India’s first agritech firms to enable unit-level product traceability, from the consumers’ perspective. It will allow customers to track product origin, including the farms and farmers’ details. 

Simultaneously, the firm provides the right price and products to the farmers. They get better earning and low waste. Farmers Fresh Zone is working continually to enhance its user experience while building cutting-edge solutions to improve its supply chain efficiency. The startup is also improving its data collection to analyze yield prediction and calculations for profit. Currently, their service is available in three cities of Kerala including Trivandrum Ernakulam and Thrissur

Pradeep stated that the sector of fruits and vegetables has a 100 billion USD valuation in India. However, 96% percent of the space is fragmented and unorganized. The organic food market value was at 0.36 billion USD in 2014, and growing at 25% CAGR. He added that the scientifically grown fruits and vegetables, which are scientifically grown and free from pesticides, hold a larger space than organic products. The startup is working hard to become a strong player in the nutrition segment. 

Rucha Joshi is fueled by her passion for creative writing. She is eager to turn information into action. With her hunger for knowledge, she considers herself a forever student. She’s currently working as a content writer and is always interested in a challenge.