Knowledge-based firm AgSri in which Vikram Akula, founder SKS microfinance, holds a 12% stake, is in discussions for fresh round of funding from new investors.
The funding would be used to set up four seeldling production centers, each requiring an investment of nearly Rs 6 crore. The production centers would enable AgSri to lower the cost of seedlings, said Biksham Gujja, the founder and chairperson of the company.
Gujja said he is having a tough time in convincing new investors to join the company.
“Some mainstream investors may be more comfortable to invest if it is patented. Instead, I believe that if we produce bud-chips efficiently by having centralised production and economies-of-scale, we can bring the per unit cost low enough to make it very attractive for farmers,” said Gujja.
AgSri’s model is to improve the productivity of agriculture with less inputs - seed, water, fertilisers and pesticides. AgSri has pioneered two models--Sustainable Sugarcane Initiative (SSI) and System of Rice Intensification (SRI), which have potential to increase yield by 20% per acre with less inputs.
But the company faces challenges in getting the farmers to adopt the new technologies. For example, shifting farmers from practicing old farming techniques to SSI and convincing them to pay slightly more initial cost to get more productivity has been a challenge for the company.
“In the case of sugarcane, for example, farmers are asked to plant one month old seedlings made by removing tiny portion of cane known as a bud. In the conventional method farmers, plant 8-12 t/ha of sugarcane. This means that there is less labour needed to plant seedlings, less water is needed, and fewer inputs such as fertilizers. So farm productivity can be increased while reducing the inputs, which also has significant environmental benefits,” says Gujja.
