Farmer cooperative to Farmveda in 7 years

Is it a coincidence that I invoke Dr. Trilochan Sastry in yesterday’s post and today there’s a message from him in my Inbox? Either that or I have psychic powers.

Dear Sir/ Ma’am,

To give you a bit of a background, India Farm Foods (IFF) with brand name Farmveda (www.farmveda.in) was founded in 2016 to raise farmer incomes substantially on a large scale. All profits of Farmveda go back to farmers. At the back end, Farmveda is supported by Farmer Producer Companies. There are over 30,000 farmers already in them based on field work done since 2004. The number is growing each year.

The goal of this work is to make farmers of India prosperous. The inspiration comes from AMUL and other dairy cooperatives that raised 1.5 crore families out of poverty and made India the world’s largest producer of milk.

Seven years ago, this farmer cooperative in Anantpur had a little less than 1000 members. Membership has now swelled past 30,000 and they’ve moved beyond the humble chikki to.. ready-to-cook snacks, chocolates, peanut butter.. and they are probably just getting started.

This wouldn’t have happened if one Dr. Sastry had just remained an academic. Instead, he channeled his inner social activist and social entrepreneur and decided to do something. That something has the makings of something powerful and Dr. Verghese Kurien is surely smiling proudly from up there.

Farmveda is sending out attractive and healthy gift hampers @ Rs. 250 . I don’t know about you.. but I am buying up their Combo 2 (millet dosa mix, chutney podi, roasted peanut chocolate, choconuts) or maybe it will be Combo 3 (lemon poha mix, upma mix) or.. what-the-heck I’m going to order both of them.