ImpactAlpha, January 16 – TechnifyBiz is a B2B online trading platform for non-perishable foods, like nuts and dried fruits, that connects India’s farming cooperatives directly with buyers. Behind the scenes, the Delhi-based startup works with India’s so-called “farmer producer organizations,” to boost the value of their products with basic sorting and processing, before listing them online.
“Farmer producer organizations in India, which are essentially cooperatives 2.0, don’t capture much value in the produce they sell. TechnifyBiz is doing supply-level upgrading, while also working downstream with buyers to ensure that they’re getting the sort of produce that they require,” explains Mark Kahn of impact agtech investor Omnivore.
Omnivore and Insitor Impact Asia Fund have backed TechnifyBiz’s $2 million funding round. It is TechnifyBiz’s first round of institutional capital.
TechnifyBiz is one of a number of startups in India and elsewhere trying to help small-scale farmers improve their incomes by boosting transparency and efficiency in the food supply chain. Omnivore has backed other such disruptive middlemen, including Bajik, another B2B commodities marketplace and agricultural (and aquacultural) input platforms DeHaat and Aquaconnect. It has also invested in FR8, a delivery and logistics platform.
Not all such business models will be successful. B2C dairy delivery service Doodhwala–the first investment from Omnivore’s $97 million second fund–sought to improve market access for India’s small dairy farmers by collecting and delivering their milk directly to households. The company recently ceased its delivery operations.
