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Showing posts with label Consortium. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Consortium. Show all posts

Monday, November 18, 2013

In the news : Supply Shortage for Meat Animals

Savera Farms started their goat operations earlier this year but we have been studying the domestic meat market for close to 2 years now. Despite several non-vegetarians each of us may personally know of, meat consumption in India is among the lowest in the world. Several studies have shown meat consumption in India being traditionally low but despite our historical & cultural preferences, there is a distinct change in tide with rise in per capita consumption. Rise in demand can be largely attributed to changing lifestyles, better product availability and affordability.


Despite the low(er) nationwide demand, meat consumption is no longer only for the upper echelons of society. The prices remain high in parts of the country depending on the type of meat. It may be easy to assume that prices are purely driven by demand & supply but as seen even in developed countries, meat production is among the most expensive across all types of food production. There are a few retail players in the Indian market who have successfully tapped the latent demand and created self sustaining brands. We feel there is a lot of room for growth with significant market size for raw, processed and value added meat products.


The crux of many issues in the Indian food chain remains around lacking infrastructure - for production, processing and distribution needs. However, niche players who have been able to develop specific competencies have been successful in mitigating known issues. Over the last few years, monsoons in Tamil Nadu have been intermittent. Bountiful in select areas, the monsoon were meager in most of the state causing drought like situation in many districts. In instances of smaller herd operations, their source of feed is either pasture grazing or rain fed fodder production. With compromised food supply, meat animal (cattle, goat, pig) availability in parts of the state has suffered. Since the last census, in 2007, net availability of meat animals has decreased by close to 36%. In case of meat goats, the herd count impact was more severe with reduction of 225,000, a net reduction of almost 44% !

Interested herd owners may contact the Animal Husbandry Department which is trying to implement several State government schemes such as Accelerated Fodder Development Programme, Drought Mitigation Scheme, Scheme for Poultry Development, and supplying hybrid animal varieties to farmers. At Savera Farms, we will start animal acquisitions from other producers in early 2014. While we continue to rapidly grow our herd, we also recognize that our supply will have intermittent gaps. As our repeat customer base grows and sales channels develop, we see the importance of partnering with other herd owners to service the market demand. Do not hesitate to contact us if you would like to work with Savera Farms as a supply partner for meat goats.

Credits : The Hindu , Collapse of Industrial Civilization

Monday, November 11, 2013

Calling Mango Producers : Remove middlemen, sell to Savera Farms!



The summer of 2014 will herald the first season of Mangoes at Savera Farms. Given this is our first season and our plantation is still largely juvenile, we are not expecting a heavy yield but we are still excited. With close to 9,000 trees between our ultra-high density (UHD) and regular plantations, even the initial lower yields should result in several tonnes of fruit. Apart from readiness tasks around harvesting, a successful operation will require several time bound priorities post fruit picking and during distribution. A few such activities are listed below. For those looking to read up, here are a few public domain publications from Mexican and Filipino Mango producers.
  • Initial Fruit Inspections
  • Setup of Packaging house
  • Fruit washing, sizing and labeling
  • Hot-water / post water treatment
  • Ripening
  • Packing line
  • Package design and sourcing
  • Storage rooms
  • Audit & record keeping
Each of these activities can become an operation in itself depending on processed volumes. Developing competency in these processes becomes critical if the goal is to attain high volumes and high margins. At the end of the day, each producer has to consider investing in these tasks based on their go-to-market channels and expected revenue.
At Savera Farms, premium Mango varieties include Imampasand, Alphonso and Bnaganpalli which are a mix of shy and heavy bearers. We have been fervently working to develop our go-to-market channels and direct (volume) customers. We also look at this as an opportunity to develop relationships with other Mango orchards and producers. If any producers have a mature Mango orchards and are looking for an alternative channel to sell their fruits, please contact us! Our preferred fruit procurement area is around Madurai, Chennai and Trichy but we would be happy to work with producers from other areas as well. Remove multiple layers of brokers, agents and middlemen who want to profit at the expense of the farmer-producer.


At Savera Farms, we look for long term purchase contracts and strongly prefer to work with direct producers and orchard owners. There are several opportunities and we are looking to team up with enthusiastic, motivated agri-preneurs who can become reliable suppliers. Contact us!


Disclaimer : Pictures are for reference and from public domain

Monday, April 15, 2013

Melia Dubia Consortium - Invitation to Participate

In the last few years, there has been a lot of interest exhibited in the cultivation of Melia Dubia as a biomass / timber crop. The interest has been primarily generated in the southern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu due to favorable climatic conditions. As always, we are glad to respond to scores of inquires regarding cultivation and commercial prospects of Melia Dubia as an investment venture.

While there are small pockets of cultivation spread across the region, there is no organized effort in promoting the product to the best of our knowledge. We feel it would be helpful for like-minded agri-prenuers to form a group to periodically meet, brainstorm ideas about cultivation, marketing and creating awareness about this crop in the timber industry.

While the earlier cultivators of Melia Dubia broke ground about 3-5 years ago, I think this is the right time to collectively organize thoughts and efforts. Immediate and longer term benefits would be :
  • To spread awareness among agri-prenuers of the potential of this timber.
  • To educate cultivators of cultivation practices.
  • To develop marketing approaches and connect producers with consumers.
  • To bypass brokers and engage end-customers as a consortium with supply-side leverage.
  • To investigate additional revenue streams for Melia Dubia consumption.
As part of initial pulse-check, I would be interested to see how many folks are interested and have the ability to actively participate. Please take the poll on the right panel to express your current interest. I anticipate initial discussions to be conference calls and later move into physical meetings. Don't forget to drop us a note (info@saverafarms.com) with your contact details so we may reach out to you.

For your reading pleasure, feel free to peruse through these online resources on Melia Dubia :
  • http://www.clenergen.com/biomass/melia-dubia
  • http://www.hunsply.com/meliadubia.html
  • http://www.benwood.eu/cms/dmdocuments/JagdishChander_Meliadubiapotentialspecies.pdf
April 28 Update : The polling tool mentioned above was standard issue from Google (Blogger) but did not work as expected and was removed. However, we have heard from a few participants already, please continue to reach out to us via email and we'll be sure to include you when the initial consortium discussions are organized.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Musings : Farm Innovations, Emus and Farmer Consortiums

In this digital age, information is everywhere and sometimes there is too much to comprehend. Here are a few of my musings and tidbits of information that I discovered recently and found interesting so decided to share.

Frugal Innovations from Haryana : This was an interesting feature on an Indian farmer done by BBC. The innovation came in the form of a machine developed by the farmer to extract Aloe Vera jelly. Aloe Vera is an attractive option for many since it grows well in marginal lands. Problem with marginal areas is that they often have marginal infrastructure and resources as well. The issue is exacerbated since Aloe Vera jelly extraction process is a time sensitive given harvested leaves spoil within hours. Our enterprising farmer has developed machine(s) which allow him to extract jelly quickly, preserve and process it. Happy to see he has seen some success and even exported his machines to other countries!



Disenfranchisement of Emus :  Some of you will remember the Emu farming craze that swept the agri-community about 2 years ago. The forums were ablaze with how lucrative Emu farming can be. There were dozens of 'suppliers' touting Emu eggs and chicks on every online forum. However, there was a distinct lack of information on Emu consumption. Some folks did inquire but received little information on how & where to sell Emu products. Fast forward 2 years, Emu farms are now in dismal state across the country. There is very limited domestic demand for Emu products in India and international markets are no better. I cannot help but think of the proverbial 'told-you-so' when discussing this with my impacted agri-prenuer friends. It is unfortunate that hard-earned money was lost and now we have starving birds dying a slow death in numerous farms.



Farmer-Producer Organization Support in India : It was a welcome change when I recently read about the central govt. policy which promises tangible benefits to the farmer-producer community. Essentially, the policy will enable Farmer-Producer Organizations (FPO) a.k.a farmer consortium, to available of cheap funding. The FPO will need to be a registered consortium meetings the eligibility criteria set forth. In addition, such consortiums will also receive tax breaks since their earnings are considered taxable. While such measures are progressive, I am still curious how many farmers have actually benefited from it. With the ball set in motion, I am hopeful that the govt. is keen to implement and socialize such policies as well and this is not just lip service!


Credits : Original publishers withhold copyrights.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Farmer Profile : Nalla Keerai (Good Greens!)

It's been a while since our last farmer profile. We highlight enterprising and entrepreneurial initiatives related to agri production or distribution under this section. Those of you who are recent joiners at Techie2Aggie might want to check out the labels on right for previous farmer profile postings. These profiles are always inspiring and at Savera Farms they definitely spur us into action.

Nalla Keerai (Good Greens) is a great example of a group of young agri-prenuers trying to bridge the debilitating  gap between farm and fork in India, all of this while propagating healthy eating! Currently, they are operating in and around Chennai but have plans to start operations near Madurai area in a couple of months. One of our blog followers is currently cultivating various greens in Arupkottai (near Madurai) and plans to collaborate with Nalla Keerai, making it a win - win collaboration from producer - consumer perspective. Great way stay local and support local.

Feel free to post comments if you'd like to get more details on the Arupkottai operations. Read more on Nalla Keerai's story here.. 



Monday, February 4, 2013

Moringa market trends - An eye opener!

Last year, Moringa started yielding at 6 months. Our gross yield was not significant since the trees were still so small and young. Nonetheless, it was a delight to see long, smooth, green pods. These smaller volumes were not economically feasible for Chennai or other bigger trading markets at the time. Later, during October - December months, the yield further decreased due to monsoons and mild temperatures.

Profuse flowering was seen in January and we are all excited to see what we have in store as far the yield is concerned. It was about the right time to analyze the market and seek potential retail customers in the big town - Chennai. So, we made a trip trip to Koyambedu Vegetable market in Chennai last week to get a sense of the prevailing rates and seasonal procurement practices.

We were able to connect with a couple of big wholesalers/commission agents and discovered that the current wholesale selling rates (end of January) was about Rs 35 - 45 per Kg. The rate is expected to remain in this range for the next 2-3 months. During summer, the average rate drops to Rs 20-25/Kg due to higher supply from within the state, primarily Theni, Dindigul and Tirunelveli.

Moringa from western states starts coming into Tamil Nadu during monsoon months, starting from August through December. Due to reduced local availability, the rates shoot up to Rs 80 - 120 per Kg. This little exercise gave us clear insight of the market dynamics for Moringa trading and exposed opportunities to maximize revenue based on seasonal availability from other parts of the country. Having comprehended the wholesale trends, we visited some of the bigger vegetable shops and retail chains. What we found was quite baffling for us - Moringa was retailing at Rs 70 - 90 per Kg. Contrast this with what we got at farm gate recently - Rs 15-18/Kg! This demonstrates the disparity in the entire supply chain, unfortunately this was somewhat expected. Producers have to bridge the gap between farm-to-fork by embracing innovative, aggressive marketing techniques to maximize returns.

This trip was an eye opener for sure and it was encouraging to see retailers welcoming producers for direct sales, without middlemen. Till the time, producer gets significantly more than farm gate rate and the retailer procures cheaper than wholesale rate, I would say it is a win - win situation for all! Everyone in the supply chain earns more and the inflationary trends are under check.

At this time, we are looking for the most efficient and cost effective way to transport produce from Sivagangai to Chennai. Any recommendations from those who have done it in the past? At Savera Farms, we can definitely use everyone's help and guidance. :)

Finally, my thoughts go back to our goal to form a group of producers to leverage such opportunities collectively - connect with us directly if you are interested in working together. Feel free to share encouraging market trends or stories where producers have opportunities to bridge the farm to fork (retail) gap.

Monday, December 24, 2012

Transformation of Agri related Organized Retail in India

A few months ago I read an article on Dr Ashok Gulati, who has had an illustrious career in policy making at the national and international levels. One of his enduring publications is part of a key-note presentation around Role of Organized Retail in India. While parts of this presentation were published as early as 2008, I can certainly relate to his assessment and recommendations at that time.

During our first season of Watermelon, our issues were not those of production – the impediments became immediate access to sales channel and marketing. Now that we have started to see a small but regular harvest of Moringa, we have regular consumers of our produce but challenges largely remain the same when our production will increase in 6-8 months. 

There are several data points published here by Dr Gulati, some of them are encouraging trends and others are ripe opportunities to be harvested by an enterprising Agri-prenuer!

1 - Agri-food system is under threat but rapidly transforming
  • Organized retail (food & grocery) is rapidly expanding    
  • Other front end players (processors, logistic suppliers, etc) are responding
  • But, the farm sector is fragmenting

2 - Changing Production Basket~ All India


Comments : At Savera Farms, we have decided on a portfolio of Long, Medium and Perennial agri crops. To alleviate risks and fluctuations in land crops, we will also venture into animal husbandry .

3 - Transforming Agri-food System

A noticeable trend in recent years is that of entry of major corporate firms. These players are entering at the front end in organized food processing and retailing. As a result of this growing integration, farmers are likely to experience much greater interface with corporate world, some working very closely with them and others in tandem. The key issue that remains for us is to see how it can benefit the farmers. Will the growing competition amongst the front-end players deliver better prices, markets and value chain services to the farmers?



Comments : We believe the new paradigm will be between producers > processors > marketers, as highlighted above. Savera Farms would be interested in exploring go-to market and distribution arrangements with volume processors or traders. Our focus will remain on varieties of premium mango, Moringa, timber and fresh meat (on-hooves). We hope to generate positive synergies for a win-win situation for all involved.

4 - Organized retail in India is an unfolding revolution.  

There is a huge potential for growth and expansion in the organized (food) retail, here are a few key metrics to consider :
  • Total retail $322 bn in 2006/07 likely to grow to $590 bn in 2011/12. That is ~13% per annum growth!
  • Organized retail is set to grow at 45-50% p.a until 2011-12. Organized retail share (as part of total retail) would grow from 4% in 2007-2008 to 16% in 2011-2012.
Food accounts for nearly 60% of the retail pie in India but remains at >2% under organized sector (2008). There is a huge opportunity to be explored in organized food distribution and retail. Below is how India compared in market penetration (%) of top 5 grocers in 2008.



5 - Fragmenting of Indian Farm Sector. 

This is a function of our rural social-economic trend. Agricultural holdings have become a commodity instead of being means to a sustainable living. People routinely divide and sell their current holdings, often rendering them unsustainable for production. Average holding sizes had shrunk from 4 ha (1970s) to less than 2 ha by 2003. Yet, there is fortune at the bottom of the pyramid (<2 ha holdings).

  • Marginal & small farmers are quite competitive at the farm production level
  • Low marketable surplus; high transaction costs; going through mandis; long unorganized supply chains;  eat into their net returns.

Comments : Current fragmented agri practices have become unsustainable at the bottom of the pyramid. Our experience is leading us to study economies of scale in production and explore large volume marketing arrangements. Organized agriculture is the need of the hour and consortium of progressive farmers may be the way to go. Studies confirm that farmers have benefited in the past through farm-firm tie-ups (contract farming, cooperatives, producers 'organization). This allows for reduced transaction & marketing costs, better prices & access to niche markets


Where do we go from here ?

At Savera Farms, we are fast becoming convinced that the Indian Agri sector can still hold its own. We are encouraged to see a steady and increasing flow of educated, dedicated and determined generation of new agri-prenuers come into the system. Recommendations from Dr Gulati that we subscribe to are :
  • Clusters of agri-practitioners to create scale
  • Farmer consortiums are better equipped to leverage govt sponsored production, mechanization and marketing programs.
  • Informed farmers are better able to withstand fixed asset and land value fluctuations
  • Use of modern technology in enhancing information dissemination is key for decision making
  • Focus on agricultural education and R&D opportunities is required to stay current.
We are in talks with a few fellow agri-prenuers around forming a consortium in areas of common interests (land crops or animal husbandry) and welcome suggestions or participation from the reader community as well.



Credits :
Transforming Agri-food System: Role of Organized Retail in India, Dr Ashok Gulati
http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/bitstream/57393/2/1-DrAshok%20Gulati-1.pdf