Farmers Fresh Zone plans to expand to more cities across South India, strengthen the tech with predictive AI and Blockchain as well as infrastructure development for supply chain efficiency using fresh funds.

Cochin, September 09, 2021: Safe-to-Eat, Agri-tech startup, Farmers Fresh Zone that made its name in the market with ‘Know Your Farmer’ using traceability tech, has raised INR 6 crore in pre-series A round through existing investors. Including this the company has raised INR 8.5Cr so far. The round was led by Indian Angel Network (IAN), with participation from IAN Fund, Malabar Angel Network and Native Angel Network. Seeing 300% growth in D2C brand building, Farmers FZ is eyeing to close a $5M series A round and has engaged an ibanker already.

The Kochi-based startup will use the fresh funds to expand to cities across South India, hire new talent, develop infrastructure, and strengthen the R&D to enhance traceability with Blockchain and AI based-predictive demand driven growing of FnV for farmer.

Since its establishment in 2018, the agri-tech startup has connected over 3000+ farmers to urban users through its omni-channel presence. Recently, Farmers Fresh Zone has expanded operations to Tamil Nadu and now has a presence in Kochi, Trivandrum, Kottayam, Trissur, and Coimbatore.

Back to 1498| Attapadi here we come…| How my portfolio is demonstrating Circular Economy

The startup was founded by a software engineer turned entrepreneur, Pradeep PS with an aim to improve the health and wellness standards of the consumers by providing them access to safe-to-eat, pesticide-free fruits and vegetables. The idea was to bridge the gap between farmers and consumers through a unit-level traceability for all products. The startup also adopted a two-pronged approach, wherein, on one side, consumers can track the origin of a product including details of the farms, and on the other, farmers will receive the right rates for their produce.

Speaking on the development, Pradeep PS, Founder and CEO of Farmers Fresh Zone said, “The Indian fruits and vegetable sector is valued at $100 billion, of which a staggering 96% is fragmented and disorganized. At Farmers Fresh Zone, we are building a supply chain that offers a superior customer experience. We ensure our customers get safe-to-eat and pesticide-free products, and that our farmers get the right rates for their produce. We provide them data-based predictive information about the existing demand in the market to eliminate any wastage. We are grateful to have received this funding from marquee investors. We are also thankful to the Kerala Start-Up Mission that played an important part in anchoring this deal. In the coming years, we aim to emerge as the #1 player in the premium fruits and vegetable segment of South India, with key focus in offering health and wellness based products.

Nagaraja Prakasam, Lead Investor at IAN and board member of Farmers Fresh Zone said, “FFZ has consolidated its position strongly during the pandemic by moving 100% online and away from physical stores. Growing 600% during this time, FFZ is well positioned to crack the D2C fresh FnV space comparable to how on-demand meat delivery has taken off in the country. FFZ is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring the best quality products to their consumers, and helping farmers sell pesticide-free products while securing fair rates for their produce. Recently, FFZ was recognized by UN for its low carbon initiative. We are pleased to make this contribution and hope the company achieves its goals and marks its presence globally.” Prakasam, who is a veteran IAN lead investor, has led over 9 IAN deals notably, Conversational AI Uniphore that raised $140M Series D, and EdTech SP Robotic Works $3M Series A recently.

Moreover, through its technological interventions, Farmers Fresh Zone is working relentlessly to provide enhanced user experience, building cutting-edge solutions to improve supply-chain efficiency, and collecting data to analyze yield prediction and profit calculation.

Backed by a strong team with young leaders on board, Farmers FZ conducts regular market studies and alerts farmers regarding prices, mechanization, domain knowledge, insurance, and others.

About Indian Angel Network:

Indian Angel Network is India’s first and world’s largest business angel network with close to 500 members across the world, comprising the who’s who of successful entrepreneurs and dynamic CEOs. With investors from 12 countries, IAN’s presence spans 7 locations, which includes cities in India and the UK. The network is sector agnostic and has funded start-ups across 17 sectors in India and 7 other countries growing global footprint companies. With an excellent track record, IAN has been giving excellent cash exits year-on-year to its investor-members, for the last 11 years. Some of its marquee investee companies include Druva, Box8, Sapience Analytics, WOW Momos, Consure, Fareye, Uniphore amongst many others.

IAN has also launched the IAN Fund, an INR 375 crore fund, is a uniquely differentiated seed/early stage Fund which aims to transform India’s entrepreneurial landscape. The fund invests in innovative companies in sectors including healthcare and medical devices, VR, AI, software as a service, marketplaces, fin-tech, big data, artificial intelligence, agritech, and hardware. With this, IAN has created the single largest platform for seed and early-stage investing, enabling entrepreneurs to raise from Rs. 25 lakhs to Rs. 50 crores.





D2C fresh FnV online marketplace Farmers Fresh Zone raises INR 6 Cr in pre-series A round led by IAN

Serial No.PublicationCoverage Links
1Business Standardhttps://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian-121090900889_1.html
2Outlookhttps://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-preseriesa-funding-round-led-by-ian/2156800
3Yourstoryhttps://yourstory.com/2021/09/funding-agritech-startup-farmersfreshzone-preseriesa-ian/amp
4BW Disrupthttp://bwdisrupt.businessworld.in/article/Farmers-Fresh-Zone-Raises-INR-6-Cr-In-Pre-Series-A-Round-Led-By-IAN/09-09-2021-403901
5Entrepreneurhttp://www.entrepreneur.com/article/384513
6Free Press Journalhttps://www.freepressjournal.in/business/agritech-startup-farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-round-led-by-ian
7VC Circlehttps://www.vccircle.com/immunitoai-anveshan-gameeon-studios-farmers-fresh-zone-raise-funding
8My Big Plungehttps://mybigplunge.com/startups/funding-news/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/
9CIOlhttps://www.ciol.com/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-crore-pre-series-round/
10DT Nexthttps://www.dtnext.in/News/Business/2021/09/09162948/1317056/Farmers-Fresh-Zone-raises-Rs-6-cr-in-preseriesA-funding-.vpf
11HR Nexthttps://hrnxt.com/news/investment/agritech-platform-farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-crore-in-pre-series-a-round/42291/2021/09/09/
12Flipboardhttps://flipboard.com/@entrepreneuind/entrepreneur-india-m48ao6b5z/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-inr-6-cr-inpre-series-a-round-led-by-ian/a-TWF6l_t2SPe06ZWXF_GkHA%3Aa%3A1803881175-6a09a6e867%2Fentrepreneur.com
13The Outreachhttps://theoutreach.in/paytm-money-launches-wealth-and-investment-advisory-marketplace-on-its-platform/
14Growth Possiblehttps://growthpossible.net/2021/09/09/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/
15The Startup Labhttps://thestartuplab.in/agritech-startup-farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding/
16Business News Indiahttps://thebusinessnewsindia.com/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/
17Buisness Jounralhttps://business-journal.in/editors-pick/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian-business-journal/
18Newz Beatshttp://www.newzbeats.com/business/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/
19The OutreachFarmers Fresh Zone raises Rs 6 cr in pre-series-A funding round led by IAN – The Outreach News
20Dev Discoursehttps://www.devdiscourse.com/article/business/1723850-farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian
21Muckrackhttps://muckrack.com/media-outlet/freepressjournal
22Munafasutrahttps://munafasutra.com/nse/newsTomorrow
2315 Minute Newshttps://www.15minutenews.com/article/205175286/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/
24Itjuzihttps://www.itjuzi.com/investevent/12708644
25Trendlynehttps://trendlyne.com/posts/3151477/monsoon-updates-31-killed-in-one-week-in-rain-related-incidents-in-maharashtra-s-marathwada-region
26VC Worldhttps://vc-world.in/2021/09/09/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-inr-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-round-led-by-ian/
27Acti Worldhttps://actiworld.com/2021/09/09/farmers-fresh-zone-raises-rs-6-cr-in-pre-series-a-funding-round-led-by-ian/

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.