July 17, 2019

by Lynda Kiernan

Pune, India-based agtech startup Ecozen has raised an unspecified Series A led by impact investor Caspian and the Hivos-Triodos Fund. Omnivore Partners, which previously funded the startup in 2015, returned to also participate in this round. 

Founded in 2009 by Devendra Gupta, Prateek Singhal and Vivek Pandey, Ecozen began with a focus on irrigation and water conservancy with the development of a solar-powered irrigation pump. However, the scope of the company soon expanded to address challenges faced along the entire perishable food supply chain. 

Today, the company is creating an effect at all stages of the chain through  platforms currently used across 20,000 farms:

The Ecotron – an irrigation tool that uses IoT, analytics, proprietary algorithms, and diagnostics to help farmers make informed irrigation decisions. 

The Ecofrost –  a solar powered, portable corn storage room with capacity for 5 metric tons and efficient thermal energy storage to provide backup of more than 30 hours for on-farm, post-harvest cooling and storing of perishable produce. Designed for areas with unreliable access to energy, the off-grid Ecofrost has a two-year breakeven period, and leads to increases in profits of more than 40 percent. 

The company has also launched a marketplace platform that serves to digitally link Ecofrost farmers to exporters, retailers, and processors, offering market facilitation while also reducing food waste. 

“We see that the company’s strategy has a perfect blend of promoting sustainable agriculture and storage by using solar energy based water pumping systems and cold chain facilities,” said Ravi Narasimham, Investment Director, Caspian. 

The company pursuit of innovation has resulted in revenue of Rs 69 Cr (US$10.2 million), and the company winning the inaugural Rabobank Food Loss Challenge Asia in the fourth quarter of last year. At an event held in Singapore in November of last year, Ecozen won both the Jury’s Prize of US$15,000 and the Audience’s Prize of US$5,000 awarded at Rabobank Asia’s Food & Agriculture Advisory Board meeting. 

“A win at the Food Loss Challenge Asia is a validation of our efforts and product offering,” said Prateek Singhal, co-founder and COO of Ecozen, at the time. “Food Loss is a key issue in all developing countries and we at Ecozen are striving to build solutions to prevent this. This Challenge will help us to reach out and collaborate with like-minded businesses and organizations working towards tackling food loss. Further, it can also provide access to capital which would fast track our product development and business expansion plans.”

The company, which is currently in the process of raising its Series B, will use the capital gained through its Series A to support its efforts to launch new cold-chain products, to enter new markets for irrigation sales, and to expand its perishable food market facilitation platform.

“As a company that enables better livelihoods for farmers using technology and innovation, one that offers renewable-based energy products that cater to agri-focused markets, Ecozen is a natural partner for us,” said Karel Nierop, fund manager, Hivos-Triodos Fund.

“We look forward to helping drive their mission and vision forward and together creates a positive impact on the value chain.”

– Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to GAI News. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration, please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.com.