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Home2021July (Page 13)
Machinery – Post-harvesting, Trade

Mahindra’s subsidiary Erkunt Traktor to acquire Turkey based Hisarlar’s Agricultural Machinery business and build on its turnaround, evolving into a full range Farm Equipment OEM 

 Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, today announced that its subsidiary Erkunt Traktor Sanayi A.S. (Erkunt), will acquire the Agriculture Machinery business from Hisarlar Makina Sanayi ve Ticaret Anonim Şirketi (Hisarlar), also a subsidiary of the company. In a reverse deal, Mahindra Overseas Investment Company (Mauritius) Limited (MOICML), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, and Erkunt have agreed to sell their entire stake of 94.3 per cent in Hisarlar, for an aggregate consideration of Turkish Lira 6.6 million (equivalent to approx. Rs 5.6 crores).

As part of the restructuring its subsidiaries in Turkey, Mahindra Group will exit Hisarlar’s Metal Fabrication business. While, Erkunt will acquire the Agricultural Machinery business of Hisarlar, including select related assets, Intellectual Property and Brand use rights. Mahindra Group, through Erkunt will continue to stay invested in the core business of Agricultural Machinery products ranging from soil tillage to post harvest segments. In addition, Erkunt will acquire select cabin manufacturing assets of Hisarlar.

Commenting on the transaction, Hemant Sikka, President, Farm Equipment Sector, M&M Ltd. said, “Through this transaction, we have retained the core business of Agricultural Machinery and all the IP built over the years. This makes Erkunt Traktor a full range Farm equipment OEM, ensuring that our dealers in Turkey and customers in Europe and other international markets continue to be serviced. It is in line with our capital allocation and in perfect harmony with our purpose of ‘Transform Farming, Enrich Lives’.

Mahindra continues to establish itself as a global tractor maker with a full line of farm machinery business through acquisitions and new manufacturing units, underpinned by the requisite brand and sales infrastructure as well as a leveraging its global network for product development.

Mahindra’s subsidiary Erkunt Traktor to acquire Turkey

Agrotech, Start ups

Samunnati bags awards in Best Digitalization Kaizen category, Best Innovative Kaizen in Quality category and 1st Runner Up in the Best Kaizen for Productivity Improvement category. 

  Agritech start-up Samunnati has ranked as a position holder in various categories by one of India’s biggest industry bodies – Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in the 4th CII National Kaizen Circle Competition 2021 conducted from 31 May 2021 to 2 June 2021. The competition had 200+ entries coming from different sectors such as manufacturing, processing, and service sectors. Samunnati has bagged three awards under the below streams.

 Samunnati Agro Solutions Pvt. Ltd. was deemed the winner in the Best Digitalization Kaizen category. Samunnati Financial intermediation and Services Private Limited bagged the Strong Commitment Award in the Best Innovative Kaizen in Quality category and 1st Runner Up in the Best Kaizen for Productivity Improvement category.

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is a non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led, and industry-managed organization, with over 9000 members from the private as well as public sectors, including SMEs and MNCs, and an indirect membership of over 300,000 enterprises from 294 national and regional sectoral industry bodies. CII works to create and sustain an environment conducive to the development of India, partnering Industry, Government, and civil society, through advisory and consultative processes. 

 Samunnati mentioned that we would like to specially acknowledge our achievers from Trade Process and FPO Engagemwnt. Ayush Khandelwal, Gayatri Gopan from the trade process team for the Automation of end-to-end trade process, and Amol Maria Jacob, Subhashree V from the FPO Engagement team for the Assessment of Farmer Producer Organizations through Grading Tool. Implementation of an integrated document administrative system was taken care of by Vishal Raj K while Implementation of I-assign for daily task management was performed by David.

Applauding the members of the Marketing team, Wellington S and Padmavathy H who excelled in execution in Streamlining the Lead Management Process. And last but not the least, we are pleased to declare the names of our representatives of Quality whom we were very ably anchored by in the CII National Kaizen Circle Competition 2021, Mercy Soundharya V and Ashli A, mentioned in statement by Samunnati.

 

Samunnati bags awards in Best Digitalization Kaizen

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy

The app was developed by the ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture, Bhubaneswar, with the funding support of the National Fisheries Development Board, Hyderabad

Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Giriraj Singh, launched the online course mobile app ’Matsya Setu’. The app was developed by the ICAR-Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (ICAR-CIFA), Bhubaneswar, with the funding support of the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad. The online course app aims to disseminate the latest freshwater aquaculture technologies to the aqua farmers of the country.

Matsya Setu app has species-wise/ subject-wise self-learning online course modules, where renowned aquaculture experts explain the basic concepts and practical demonstrations on breeding, seed production and grow-out culture of commercially important fishes like carp, catfish, scampi, murrel, ornamental fish, pearl farming etc.

Better management practices to be followed in maintaining the soil and water quality, feeding and health management in aquaculture operations were also provided in the course platform. The modules are divided into small video chapters for the convenience of the learners, along with additional learning materials. In order to motivate the learners and provide a lively learning experience, Quiz/Test options were also provided for self-assessment. Upon successful completion of each course module, an e-Certificate can be auto-generated. Farmers can also ask their doubts through the app and get specific advisories from experts.

Singh stated that capacity building of fish farmers is a very vital part of spearheading the technology-led aquaculture development in the country. He emphasised that training should be provided on various activities including ornamental fisheries, seaweed culture, a module on feed preparation, post-harvest value addition. He emphasised to the inclusion of inputs of successful farmers while providing training.

According to Singh, the app can also be an important tool to disseminate the latest information on different schemes among the stakeholders, especially fishers, fish farmers, youth and entrepreneurs across the country, assist them and facilitate ease of doing business. He expressed confidence that the app will serve as a wonderful platform for the farmers for learning.

During the event, Union Minister interacted with progressive fish farmers from various places in the country and taken inputs from the farmers. During the interaction, he enquired about the cost economics of the various fish culture practices and also asked some of the successful farmers to share videos of 1 to 2 minutes of their projects implemented.

While appreciating the efforts of the ICAR-CIFA & NFDB for bringing out the app for the benefit of the farmers. The Union Minister said that the app should be popularised widely and should reach every fish farmer in the country.

Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairy, JN Swain, Secretary, Department of Fisheries, Government of India and senior officers of the Department of Fisheries were present at the event.

 

The app was developed by the ICAR-Central

Acquaculture, Finance, Live Stock, Poultry, Start ups

The round is led by Singapore-headquartered Investment Company Temasek, and Multiples Private Equity. 

 Bengaluru-based Licious, a tech-powered, full stacked D2C fresh meat and seafood brand, has announced Series F funding round of $192 million. The round is led by Singapore-headquartered Investment Company Temasek, and Multiples Private Equity. Brunei Investment Agency also participated in the round. Existing investors 3one4 Capital, Bertelsmann India Investments, Vertex Growth Fund, and Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India have also participated in this round of fundraise, reaffirming their faith in the category. With this round, a few early investors have exited from their investment.

The current round of fundraise, puts Licious at the driver’s seat for being the highest funded company in this category. The company also recently announced their pledge to comply with the lofty global ESG standards, setting new benchmarks for sustainability & governance.

Over the last 5 years, Licious has been at the forefront of the disruption that India’s animal protein sector needed. The company has been instrumental in elevating the industry standards across sustainability, food safety, sourcing, production and customer experience while positively impacting lives of farmers and fishermen. Licious has successfully emerged as a category leading brand leveraging technology for supply chain excellence and setting industry first benchmarks for animal protein consumers by innovating across formats. The biggest testimony to these claims is the unprecedented growth of over 500 per cent that the company saw during the last year followed by the continuing momentum of the same. Licious has successfully delivered to more than 2 million unique customers till date.

The funds raised through Series F will be deployed towards deeper investment in technology led supply chain transformation, quality improvement, and customer experience elevation along with expanding presence in a greater number of Indian cities, powering the international expansion plan, augmenting capabilities in existing markets, strengthening Omni channel presence and powering new product launches.

The round is led by Singapore-headquartered Investment

Trade, Transportation

The union territory of Jammu and Kashmir produces more than 95 per cent of the total country’s production of commercial varieties of cherries in the country

The first commercial shipment of Mishri variety of luscious cherries from Kashmir valley has been exported to Dubai from Srinagar. APEDA assisted the shipment of cherries to Dubai by Desai Agri-Food, a venture company of Innoterra, Dubai.

Prior to this shipment, a sample consignment was sent in the middle of June 2021 from Srinagar to Dubai through air which were transhiped from Mumbai. Following an encouraging response from the consumers in Dubai, the first commercial shipment of Mishri variety of cherries were exported to Dubai.

Mishri variety of Cherries are not only taste delicious but also contain vitamins, minerals and plant compound with health benefits. The union territory of Jammu and Kashmir produces more than 95 per cent of the total country’s production of commercial varieties of cherries in the country. It produces four varieties of cherry — Double, Makhmali, Mishri and Italy.

Prior to the shipment, the cherries were harvested, cleaned and packed by APEDA registered exporter while the technical inputs were provided by the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Science and Technology of Kashmir.

APEDA-National Referral Laboratory at National Research Centre for Grapes, Pune provided support for ensuring food safety and quality in the shipment, which would help create brand for cherries especially in the Middle Eastern countries.

The commencement of commercial shipment of cherries would provide huge opportunities for exports of several temperate fruits like plums, pears, apricot and apples from Kashmir to especiallyto middle east countries in the forthcoming seasons.

APEDA has been conducting interactions with farmers, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), government officials and other stakeholders for boosting exports potential of agricultural produce from Kashmir such as apples, almonds, walnuts, saffron, rice, fresh fruits and vegetables and certified organic products.

Several rounds of virtual awareness creation programme involving the local producers, suppliers, FPOs and exporters from Kashmir are being conducted for ensuring export of temperate fruits from the region.

The union territory of Jammu and Kashmir

Environment, Supply Chain

Vows to protect, restore and preserve biodiversity as well as combat deforestation across its supply chain through collaboration with suppliers

Thailand-based Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods) vows to protect, restore and preserve biodiversity as well as combat deforestation across its supply chain through collaboration with suppliers in sourcing materials from sustainable sources and its mission towards the ’low-carbon organisation’ and decarbonisation for food security and good health of global consumers.

Prasit Boondoungprasert, CEO, CP Foods, said that CP Foods has announced the biodiversity and zero deforestation commitment. To be achieved by 2030, the commitment affirms the company’s social responsibility which has been exercised through the ’Balance of Nature’ strategy, one of three pillars towards sustainability strategies the ’Food Security, Self-Sufficient Society and Balance of Nature.’ The commitment concerns all parties throughout the supply chain, binding all to produce food without harming the environment and support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The commitment entails CP Foods and its subsidiaries that operate feed mill, animal business (livestock and aquaculture) and food business (food production and distribution) as well as suppliers and farmers that supply agricultural raw materials such as maize, fish meal, palm oil, soybeans and tapioca. CP Foods, its suppliers and farmers have joined hands in tackling forest encroachment through a responsible procurement system and a transparent traceability system.

CP Foods today accomplishes its goal in achieving the 100 per cent traceability of maize, back to the plantation fields that have legal land deeds and are not in forest areas. The system has been supported by a satellite image technology, to raise confidence in its procurement. Meanwhile, CP Foods has also implemented the ’Self-Sufficient Farmers, Sustainable Corn Project’ to support and share knowledge with maize growers in Thailand, to equip them with academic knowledge that supports less use of chemicals and helps combat impacts on the climate.


Meanwhile, CP Foods has developed and exercised the biodiversity management plans in monitoring suppliers’ traceability efficiency, to assure that its products do not contain materials from encroached forest areas. CP Foods has also assessed suppliers’ operations and traceability practices.
 

Vows to protect, restore and preserve biodiversity

Environment, R&D, Water

Erratic climate poses threat to agriculture

Climate researchers have discovered that excess irrigation over northern India has shifted the September monsoon rainfall towards the north-western part of the subcontinent. It has increased widespread weather extremes over Central India. These meteorological hazards expose vulnerable farmers and their crops to risks of failure. The study establishes that monsoon precipitation is sensitive to the choice of irrigation practices in South Asia and can help plan agricultural practices in this region.

South Asia is one of the most heavily irrigated regions of the world, largely using groundwater, and its major summer crop is paddy which is cultivated in water flooded fields. Hence it was pertinent to study how such practices can influence the monsoons which form the fulcrum of this agro-based economy.

Subimal Ghosh, Professor in Department of Civil Engineering and Convener at Interdisciplinary Programme in Climate Studies (IDPCS), a Centre of Excellence at IIT Bombay supported by the Department of Science and Technology and his climate group, investigated the impact of agricultural water use on the Indian summer monsoon using a climate model.

The research published in the journal ‘Geophysical Research Letters’ recently showed that monsoon precipitation is sensitive to the choice of irrigation practices in South Asia. In another study, Prof Subhankar Karmakar from IDPCS, IIT Bombay, and his research group identified for the first time that risks for rice and wheat have increased in the recent decade, with wheat at a two-fold higher magnitude than rice. The study followed the Assessment Report 5 of IPCC definition to quantify ‘Risk’ and has been published in ‘Environmental Research Letters.’

Increasing crop risk is predominantly driven by the decreasing number of farmers, and the wheat risk is also attributed to increasing minimum temperatures during the crop growing season. This study provided compelling evidence indicating that the hydro-climatic hazards related to precipitation extremes and drought are specifically alarmingly increasing the risk of the crop as compared to temperature extremes.

Another finding obtained from this study was extreme rainfall in recent decades in Central India has been increasing, and this is also caused by an increase in irrigation and consequent increase in evapotranspiration (the sum of evaporation from the land surface plus transpiration from plants).

 

Erratic climate poses threat to agriculture Climate

Europe, R&D

Both companies have established the Strawberry Experience Centre, where future solutions are already being developed.

Australian crop protection and specialty Seed Company Nufarm and Dutch Limgroup, an innovative breeding company specialised in asparagus and strawberry varieties, announced a collaboration in the field of biological crop protection solutions.

At the heart of the collaboration is the combination of Nufarm’s NuBio crop protection portfolio, featuring several biological solutions and biostimulants, with Limgroup’s strawberry varieties, which are less sensitive to fungal diseases. This unique combination of strong plant genetics and minimised residual input results in healthy, high-quality fruits for food chain partners and consumers.

“Limgroup and Nufarm are two companies with different core businesses, but a common ‘mission’,” explains Hildo Brilleman, Regional General Manager Nufarm EuMEA. “We both want to create a healthier food chain by optimising chemical input and lowering residues on fruit and vegetables,” he adds.

“In order to test the combination of NuBio crop protection and Limgroup’s strong genetics in detail, we have developed an extensive test programme that is carried out by Limgroup and our partners,” explains John Schoeber, Manager Marketing & Sales department Limgroup. To this end, both companies have established the Strawberry Experience Centre, where future solutions are already being developed.

The collaboration is rounded off by intensive training of the European channel partners and, for example, consulting on the NuBio best practices and events (after the COVID-19 pandemic) on the subject of biological crop protection.

Both companies have established the Strawberry Experience

Packaging & Labelling

The new ink and coating series is applicable for many paper and board applications including food packaging etc

German firm Siegwerk, a leading global provider of printing inks and coatings for packaging applications and labels, is offering a new generation of sustainable water-based inks for paper and board applications: UniNATURE.

The new product range is formulated with renewable and natural components, providing an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional inks without impacting the recyclability of paper, and board packaging taking a step towards reducing the microplastics which can be found in inks.

“UniNATURE is our third generation of sustainable water-based inks and coatings for paper and board applications meeting the requirements of brand owners and packaging converters,” says Hanns Martin Kaiser, Vice President Business Units Paper & Board EMEA and Liquid Food Packaging at Siegwerk.

The new ink and coating series is applicable for many paper and board applications including corrugated board boxes, trays and displays, fast food packaging, sacks and bags, as well as cups and wraps. It supports various printing applications whilst meeting the highest market and regulatory standards.

 

The new ink and coating series is

Agrotech, Finance

Anterra’s mission is to invest in and partner with entrepreneurs transforming vital food economy through biotech and digital innovation across crop science, animal health and human nutrition

Anterra Capital (Anterra), the international food and agriculture specialist venture capital firm, announced the initial closing of its second food and agriculture technology fund, Anterra F&A Ventures II, raising $175 million, exceeding the targeted size of the fund. Due to the positive market reception for the fund’s mission and strategy, Anterra is tracking towards an upsized second fund and anticipates a final closing in the third quarter, 2021.

Anterra’s mission is to invest in and partner with entrepreneurs transforming our vital food economy through biotech and digital innovation across crop science, animal health and human nutrition. As a research-driven, value-focussed specialist investor Anterra uniquely combines a traditional venture investment approach and ’venture creation,’ building and scaling transformative businesses with its deep industry knowledge and vast global network as a pioneer in the space.

Anterra’s unique investment approach has attracted commitments from a prestigious and aligned group of long-term oriented global investors, with continued support from Eight Roads Ventures, backed by Fidelity, and Rabo Investments, the captive investment arm of the largest global food and agricultural bank out of the Netherlands – Rabobank. New investors include Novo Holdings, a leading global life sciences investor based out of Denmark; Tattarang, one of Australia’s largest private investment groups and the holding company of the Forrest family’s private business interests; as well as other well-respected family offices, sovereign wealth funds, and state-owned investors that provide a global presence, spanning across multiple continents.

“The food economy is in critical condition, and new digital and biotech solutions are desperately needed to support better outcomes for farmers, consumers and the environment,” said Adam Anders, Managing Partner of Anterra Capital. “With the first close, we continue our mission to sustainably transform our food economy, building on our leadership position as an early-stage investor in markets such as plant and animal health, while actively expanding our investment activity across the food and agriculture value chain.”

Anterra’s mission is to invest in and

Finance, Start ups

The fund will be used to enhance actionable insights from drone data that it provides

Skylark Drones, a leading drone platform company, has secured $3 million in a pre-series A funding round to strengthen its product offerings and fuel international expansion. The funding round was co-led by investors InfoEdge Ventures and IAN Fund with participation from AdvantEdge Founders, Fowler Westrup, Restart Labs, IKP and Vimson group. This follows the company’s previous seed funding round, which took place in 2018.

Skylark Drones, which has offices in the US and India, aims to elevate worksite productivity and safety by providing geospatial intelligence to different enterprises in sectors such as mining, solar power, real estate, agriculture and inspection. Skylark Drones offers end-to-end solutions with Spectra enabling worksite intelligence and several platform integrations and API access.

“Our vision is to unlock the economic potential of aerial intelligence,” said Mughilan Thiru Ramasamy, CEO & co-founder of Skylark Drones. “We thank the lead investors of this round and believe the participation of Fowler Westrup, a leading agriculture solution company, and Vimson Group mining conglomerate will help further strengthen the sector focussed solutions we offer our customers.”

The company will primarily use the new funding to enhance the actionable insights from drone data that it provides, to aid and simplify superior business decisions and strategies for its clients. The investment will also be used to spur international product expansion and development of its drone data analytics products.

Amit Behl, Partner, Info Edge Venture Fund said, “Aerial intelligence is a theme that has immense potential as it provides significant cost, time and accuracy benefits for large infrastructure companies which face frequent cost and time overruns. Skylark has built an indigenous platform that facilitates the quick mobilisation of independent drone pilots, enabling them to run drone missions to gather aerial images of large worksites. Skylark’s computer vision software analyses this aerial imagery to offer industry-specific insights for its mining, solar and construction clients.”

The fund will be used to enhance

Agro Universities

The state of Punjab is witnessing acute water and power shortage

Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) has advised farmers to adopt water-saving technologies in paddy to overcome water and power shortage in the state of Punjab. Rice acreage continues to dominate Kharif crop area in the state due to various reasons despite efforts to reduce it. The water requirement of transplanted as well as direct sown rice reaches a high point in the fourth week of June. 

 

According to Dr Prabhjyot Kaur Sidhu, Head, Department of Climate Change and Agricultural Meteorology, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), the rainfall data available for about last 50 years shows that more than 45 per cent of rainfall for June month is received during the fourth week of June in Punjab. The rainfall pattern is prone to variations on account of climate perturbations which are on the increase. This year’s monsoon initiated ahead of regular schedule but due to the weakening of the monsoon currents, the last week of June was drier than normal, she observed.

 

“The rainfall deficit for this week (June 24 – June 30, 2021) for Punjab is more than 60 per cent as per India Meteorological Department (IMD) data. This has aggravated the problems related to meeting the irrigation needs of the rice crop,” she said. 

 

Despite peak production of about 12,800-megawatt units (compared to peaks of 12,300 and 11,500-megawatt units in 2010 and 2019, respectively), the availability of electricity is falling short of the requirement, she added. Further, the IMD has predicted subdued rainfall activity during the coming five to six days and heatwave conditions are likely to prevail over the state, she said.

 

Dr MS Bhullar, Head, Department of Agronomy, has advised the farmers to follow water-saving technologies recommended by PAU in paddy to tide over the current crisis. Since more than two weeks have elapsed since transplantation of paddy, there is no need to maintain standing water in the fields, he added. The water should be allowed to seep into the soil completely and the next irrigation should be given after two days, he said. This would ensure water saving along with a lower incidence of pests and diseases. “In case of direct-seeded rice, no attempt should be made to pond the water and the irrigation frequency should be five to seven days depending upon soil type. These techniques will also help to taper down the electricity demand in the state,” he added.

The state of Punjab is witnessing acute

AgroPolicy, Webinar

Around eight lectures and two practical sessions were held on various aspects of flood management

The ICAR-Indian Institute of Water Management (IIWM), Bhubaneswar, Odisha and International Water Management Institute, New Delhi (IWMI) virtually organised a two-day collaborative training programme on ’Enhancing Agricultural Resilience through Index-based Flood Insurance and Post-flood Management Interventions in India’.

 

In his valedictory address, the Chief Guest, Dr Suresh Kumar Chaudhari, Deputy Director General (Natural Resource Management), ICAR stressed the for identifying the seriously flood-prone regions of the different states of the country like Bihar, Odisha, Assam, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. 

 

The need for integrating the structural and non-structural measures of flood management for ecological restoration, to upscale the proven technologies like sub-surface water harvesting structures and bio-drainage with Casuarina sp. and to further strengthening the research efforts on dynamic post-flood management options were accentuated in the DDG’s address.

 

Dr A Mishra, Director, ICAR-IIWM emphasised successfully implementing the post-flood management interventions in the different flood-prone regions of the country.

 

Around eight lectures and two practical sessions were held on the various aspects of flood management like challenges of flood disaster and strategies, integrated flood risk management, flood risk assessment, remote sensing and GIS tools for flood mapping, rapid response mapping, etc., during the training programme.

 

The senior officials for the ICAR Institutes and state agricultural universities also participated in the programme.

Around eight lectures and two practical sessions

Agro chems – Fertilizers, AgroPolicy

75 tonnes of equivalent urea was dispatched to Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh from the Kalol plant in Gujarat. 

 

 

Union Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Minister N S Tomar today flagged off Nano Urea truck to the farmers in Madhya Pradesh. The truck containing 75 tonnes of equivalent urea was dispatched to Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh from the Kalol plant in Gujarat. The use of Nano Urea will help increase farmers’ income, reduce input cost and enhance the quality of yield besides reducing the use of chemical fertilizers.

“I am happy to learn that IFFCO has developed this innovative product adhering to ‘Make in India’ process. It will not only help increase the income of farmers but will also help reduce use of chemical fertilizers which in turn will help improve our environment and the planet,” the minister said while flagging off the dispatch to Madhya Pradesh.

 Speaking on the occasion, Dr U S Awasthi Managing Director IFFCO said that through this product IFFCO is contributing towards Aatmnirbhar Bharat and Aatmnirbhar Krishi and said that the product is now available across the country.

 “The Nano Urea production plants are also coming up in Brazil, Argentina and few more countries as part of International Cooperative Alliance”, Dr Awasthi said.

IFFCO had earlier dispatched Nano Urea shipments to Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. The stocks were sold within half an hour. IFFCO is already in the process of construction of its plants at its Kalol unit in Gujarat and also at Aonla and Phulpur in Uttar Pradesh in Phase- I by year 2021-22. The total annual production capacity would be initially 14 crore bottles of 500 ml, which will further be raised to 18 Crore.

Kalol plant is dispatching one truck with 15000 bottles of Nano Urea per day and soon the plant would dispatch 10 trucks every day. Kalol plant is producing 6750 tonne equivalent of urea per day, which would result in saving Rs 35,000 crore of Government’s subsidy burden and would also help farmers earn additional Rs 35000 crore.

In Phase-II, four more plants will be commissioned by year 2022-23, producing another 18 crore bottles. Nano Urea has been tested on over 11000 locations, 94 crops and 20 Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) institutes and State Agricultural Universities.

During the virtual flag off event, IFFCO Chairman B S Nakai, Vice Chairman Dileep Sanghani and Joint MD ,Rakesh Kapur were also present.

75 tonnes of equivalent urea was dispatched