Kochi-based online marketplace for fresh vegetables and fruits FamersFZ has raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding from Indian Angel Network (IAN), IAN Fund, Malabar Angels, and NativeLead. The round marks FarmerFZ’s first external investment.
Angel investors that led the funding round through IAN, include, Nagaraja Prakasam and PK Gopalakrishnan.
The funds raised will be used to develop the product, acquire more customers, and expand its geographical footprint.
FarmersFZ, operated by Farmers Fresh Zone, was founded by Calicut University graduate Pradeep PS in 2015. It provides a platform to enable farmers to sell their fresh produce directly to customers, thereby removing the middlemen, and boosting the earnings of the farmers. It further helps the customers get fresh and non-toxic vegetables cheaper.
Apart from providing vegetables, the platform also offers fresh fruits and various other vegetable and fruit products.
FarmersFZ claims to enable more than 350 farmers by connecting them to around 10,000 customers. It is also looking to expand its operations to seven new cities, in the next four years.
Pradeep PS, Founder and CEO, Pradeep PS, said, “With the right mix of technology and enabling market access, we believe there is potential to transform the value chain of all fresh produce crops. Through our platform, we are helping the rural farmers turn profitable and directly reach customers.”
FarmersFZ is further looking to help the farmers, as it works on an algorithm to help farmers predict income and yield.
Other players in the agritech domain, helping the Indian farmers using technology include, NinjaCart, CroFarm, Waycool, AgroWave, and FarmLink, among many others.
Earlier this month, New Delhi-based agritech startup Origo Commodities raised ₹80 crores in funding from a clutch of impact investors including Oikocredit, Triodos Investment Management, along with Caspian SME Impact Fund IV.
Here is a list of top agritech startups working to empower the Indian farmers.