Since its inception in 2014, agri value chain enabler Samunnati has been working on its mission of making markets work for smallholder farmers by taking agri value chains to a higher equilibrium. As per the earnings reported on June 30, 2021, Samunnati has crossed the $1 billion (INR 7,500 crore) milestone, deploying the sum by way of lending and market linkages to their customers and partners.
Equitable growth and prosperity for the agricultural ecosystem has been Samunnati’s key focus, as they strive to build a more inclusive agricultural value chain through their AMLA approach (Aggregation, Market Linkages and Advisory Services.) Till date, the startup has worked with more than 1,500 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) in India which in turn touch the lives of nearly 6-million-member farmers through their extensive FPO network. Further, they have worked on enabling the demand side of the value chain, with over 1000 Agri-Enterprises ranging from district-level aggregators to some of India’s largest business conglomerates. Samunnati currently has a presence in over 100 agri value chains across 22 states in the country.
Recognising the significance of market linkages to increase value for the smallholder farmers, Samunnati, through Samunnati Agro Solutions has been connecting buyers and sellers. They have enabled Farmer Development Centres (FDCs) across 40 locations in India that facilitate input and output intermediation for FPOs. They also have Krishi Value Hubs (KVH) and Samunnati Agro Centres (SAC) that act as hubs for value addition, processing, and packaging of agri-produce for a cluster of FPOs. Their initial batch of 5 KVH hubs service over 7000 member-farmers. Recently, on June 23, Samunnati launched India’s First Open Agri Network FPOnEXT - an exclusive affiliation programme for FPOs. The network aims to enable FPOs and the ecosystem to go to the next level, by providing access to financial solutions, market linkages, value added services, technology interventions and other on-tap services.
Samunnati recognises the role of innovation and technology in strengthening the agricultural sector and the need to diffuse these solutions for the benefit of smallholder farmers. Last year, Samunnati launched Agri Elevate, and Samaarambh, to actively collaborate with innovators, supporting access to farmer network for deploying their solutions, market linkages and access to credit for these entities. They already have over 300 agri start-ups registered on Samaarambh platform and a field-level relationship with nearly 50 of them.
In an era where the dependence on agriculture is growing to feed a booming population, leveraging innovation to boost farm productivity, and enabling Climate Smart Agriculture is of paramount importance. Recognising the significance of driving sustainable farming practices in the Indian ecosystem, earlier this year, Samunnati collaborated with a leading Hyderabad-based Agritech startup Kheyti, to deliver an innovative and affordable greenhouse-in-a-box solution which will help enhance the income levels of over 1 lakh farmers. Similarly, Samunnati also acquired a Delhi-based agri logistics and supply chain startup Kamatan Farm Tech to bring the last-mile benefits of digitalisation to FPOs and agri enterprises.
Commenting on the milestone, Ani Kumar S G, Founder and CEO said “ The $1 billion mark is a significant milestone in our journey to enable the agri value chains operate at a higher equilibrium. We are grateful to our customers, partners, stakeholders and above all, the farmers for their unstinting faith and support over the past years. We are blessed to have an enabling cohort of investors, lenders and other stakeholders who have encouraged us to move forward on our mission. We strive to make agriculture profitable and sustainable for the millions of smallholder farmers that ensure our nation's food security. We will continue to forge ahead on our mission of making markets work for 50 million farmers by 2025.”
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