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Agrotech, Machinery – Post-harvesting

The certificate was granted by Central Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute, Budni for Escorts’ electric tractor in the 21-30 HP category.  

Escorts Ltd, India’s leading engineering conglomerate, Agri machinery Division (EAM) has announced that the company has received Central Motors vehicles rules, 1989 (CMVR) certification in India for the electric tractor from Central Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute, Budni.

Escorts limited is the first and the only company to receive the CMVR certificate in India for the Electric Tractor. The certificate was granted by Central Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute, Budni for Escorts’ electric tractor in the 21-30 HP category. 

The company has been exporting its electric tractors since 2019 and now plans to launch the same in India. Three years ago, in 2017, we had showcased futuristic and eco-friendly electric tractor concept in variants of Mechanical & Hydrostatic power transmission platform for sustainable and green agriculture. We started export of these tractors in 2019 and now with this certification, will be launching in domestic market too. The launch and other details will be shared soon, said the company in the release.

 

 

 

The certificate was granted by Central Farm

Agro chems – Chemicals, AgroPolicy

CMDs of stakeholder PSUs agreed to expedite their internal process on the Namrup project.

A meeting was held on January 21, 2021, under the chairmanship of DV Sadananda Gowda, Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers regarding the upcoming 12.7 lakh MMTPA capacity urea plant at Namrup. The meeting was attended by Rameshwar Teli, Minister of State for Food Processing Industries, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Finance Minister of Assam, Chandra Mohan Patowary, Minister of Industries & Commerce of Assam, RK Chaturvedi, Secretary (Fertilisers), Dharam Pal, Additional Secretary (Fertilisers), Shri Sushil Chandra Mishra, CMD (OIL), S Mudgerikar, CMD (RCF), Asim Kumar Ghosh, CMD (BVFCL), Nirlep Singh Rai, Director (NFL) and others.

Gowda said that bringing development in the North East region is a priority of the present Government under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi. It is therefore imperative to expedite the process of setting up of a new state of art urea unit at Namrup in line with the vision of the Prime Minister to attain self-sufficiency in urea production. The urea unit will be able not only to cater demands of local farmers for fertilizers but surplus if any could also to be exported to neighboring countries in South Asia. He impressed upon the CMDs of stakeholder PSUs to conclude their internal process regarding this project at the earliest.

Biswas conveyed that the Government of Assam is ready to extend all kinds of support to the Namrup project, including financial support to the best extent possible.

CMDs of stakeholder PSUs agreed to expedite their internal process on the Namrup project.

CMDs of stakeholder PSUs agreed to expedite

Live Stock, Poultry

Hester Bioscience’s technical team has been assisting the poultry industry by improving the biosecurity and general health condition of poultry to ward off the disease. 

Ahmedabad based Hester Biosciences announced that Hester’s revenues have not got impacted in this current Bird Flu situation prevailing in India. The company continues to grow as per our forecasted growth plans. Hester Biosciences is one of India’s leading animal healthcare companies and are the second largest poultry vaccine manufacturer in the country.

There have been Bird Flu outbreaks across India. The spread of Bird Flu has been mainly through migratory wild birds. In the winter months, wild birds migrate to the tropical areas, India being in the tropics.

These birds may have been infected with Bird Flu. They carry the disease along their travel path and infect other birds in the journey. No country has control over the movements of the migratory wild birds or on their spreading of any disease including Bird Flu disease.

These migratory wild birds first infect other wild birds in those geographies which then locally spread the disease. Bird Flu could then spread in organized poultry as well as backyard poultry. The Indian Government’s policy towards controlling Bird Flu in poultry is by stamping out the infected poultry population.

While there have been Bird Flu outbreaks in organized poultries in India, Hester Biosciences’s technical team has been assisting the poultry industry by improving the biosecurity and general health condition of poultry to ward off the disease.

 

 

Hester Bioscience’s technical team has been assisting

E-commerce, Live Stock

With its foray into these 7 new markets, Licious aims at unlocking the huge business opportunity in the fresh meat and seafood segment.

Bengaluru based, Licious, India’s largest fresh meat, meat products and sea food brand, has kick-started the New Year with the announcement of the strategic expansion to 7 new cities in India. After launching in Jaipur and Coimbatore in Nov-Dec 2020, the company has extended its operations to Vijayawada, Vizag, and Kochi. Licious is also all set to enter Puducherry and Kolkata, India’s key culinary hub for meat and seafood, by early 2021.

With its foray into these 7 new markets, Licious aims at unlocking the huge business opportunity in the fresh meat and seafood segment, while adding to its roster of 7 existing markets across India. 

Elaborating on the expansion strategy, Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta, Co-Founders, Licious said, “We have spent the last five years perfecting our knowledge on meat and seafood ecosystem in India- be it the supply chain, processing methods or consumer preference. Our nuanced understanding gives us the confidence to soar ahead and serve superior quality meats & an unparalleled meaty experience to more Indian consumers.”

 Adding on to the comment, the founders also said, “Be it Kolkata and its Kosha Mangsho or Kochi’s Meen Molagita Curry, there are few culinary hubs in the world that can compete with such flavour and fervour. An equally discerning and potent market exists in Jaipur, Coimbatore, Vijayawada, Vizag, and Puducherry – towns that are home to well-heeled residents and expats and cuisines that are pre-dominantly seafood- and meat- based. Despite these factors, meat lovers find it a challenge to source world-class products that deliver on freshness, hygiene, and a standardized experience, consistently. With our superior quality products, we believe Licious will not just raise the bar for quality meats and seafood but uplift the overall culinary experiences in these markets”.

 Licious’ entry into these strategic markets, including Tier II cities, highlight the brand’s commitment to elevate an industry which is still 96% unorganised. India’s meat market is valued at $40 billion, with over 73% of the country’s population being meat eaters.

 

 

 

With its foray into these 7 new

World

The two companies set up a carnivore-branded food truck in a small suburb of Tel-Aviv

Israeli Alt-Meat innovator, Redefine Meat has revealed the unprecedented success of the largest-scale public blind-tasting of Alt-Meat products targeting meat-eaters. Conducted recently with high-quality Israeli meat distributor, Best Meister, the companies launched a food truck concept named “There’s a new meat in town”. Following an overwhelming response from the public, Redefine Meat has formed a strategic partnership with Best Meister, who will distribute the company’s Alt-Meat products commercially to Israeli restaurants and high-end butchers in the first half of 2021.

The two companies set up a carnivore-branded food truck in a small suburb of Tel-Aviv (Kidron, Israel), targeting up to 200 tastings in two days. The truck boasted staple Mediterranean meat foods, cooked to order, which were in fact Alt-Meat provided by Redefine Meat. Putting the meat experience truly to the test, the meat was served with little to no condiments or extras – focusing consumer senses entirely on the Alt-Meat’s appearance, flavor and texture. Driven purely by customer satisfaction and word of mouth, over 600 visitors attended the food truck and purchased close to 1000 servings of meat – selling out in less than five hours. Upon the revelation that the meat products were plant-based, consumer feedback demonstrated overwhelmingly that the Alt-Meat products were comparable to animal meat on key metrics such as taste, texture, and mouthfeel – with over 90 per cent acceptance rate.

The success of the pilot test marks a historic moment for Redefine Meat, playing a pivotal role in the formation of a strategic partnership with Best Meister. Renowned for high-quality meat products, Best Meister will provide Redefine Meat the go-to-market infrastructure and reach to launch in the Israeli culinary sector.

The two companies set up a carnivore-branded

Agrotech, Start ups

With Subrat, the company aims to further build smarter & intelligent SAAS solutions on its platform and extend it to a global audience.

India’s leading agtech innovator AgNext, has announced the expansion of its leadership team by on boarding Dr Subrat Panda as Chief Technology Officer. With Subrat, the company aims to further build smarter & intelligent SAAS solutions on its platform and extend it to a global audience.

Prior to joining AgNext, Subrat worked with Capillary Technologies as the Head of Engineering, AI and Data Sciences. He is a B Tech graduate in Computer Science from prestigious IIT Kharagpur and PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the same institution. Subrat brings immense experience in hardware, software and artificial intelligence alike, having worked with companies like Synopsys, IBM STG, Nvidia, and Taro across his professional career.

Subrat has also authored multiple patents owing to his deep understanding of technological solutions and research prowess. At AgNext, Subrat will be focusing on structuring deeptech and aligning product lines for a global client base. Building further value added SaaS solutions on its AI enabled platform, Qualix. Subrat plans to overhaul Quality based trade using valuable SaaS solutions at all transaction nodes within agribusiness value chains.

“AgNext is truly AI at its core working with the aim to deliver best applications to transform agriculture and make a global impact. I come from an agricultural background and always aspired to go back to my roots and make a dent in the agri industry leveraging technology. My passion for AI and agriculture are now coming together in the form of AgNext. At AgNext we are working on the vision to build a world class agri tech product leveraging AI, Smart and Intelligent IoT & sensors, robust platforms all coming together in the form of deep tech IP as an outcome of this process. A very integrated approach has to be undertaken in that direction as we are building the most valuable agritech product out of India, for the world”, Subrat Panda, CTO AgNext said..

 

With Subrat, the company aims to further

Acquaculture, Live Stock, R&D

The farms in Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Orissa posed the most threat to the environment

An analytical study of aquaculture farms carried out across 10 Indian states has found evidence of hazardous levels of metals, as well as severe violations of food safety, public health, and animal welfare and environmental standards. 

They studied about 250 shrimp and fish farms across 9 highest producing states and one Union Territory: fresh and brackish water farms in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Pondicherry, Orissa and West Bengal, and freshwater farms in Jharkhand, Bihar, Assam and Chattisgarh. 

Tamil Nadu had the worst water quality in fish farms, while West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Pondicherry showed high-level public health hazards. The farms in Bihar, Tamil Nadu and Orissa posed the most threat to the environment.

The study found fish farms having high levels of cadmium and lead contamination. Both these metals upon consumption of fish, can pass to humans and cause long term damage. 

A majority of fish farms even faced the problem of nitrogen overdose, as a result of nonexistent or negligible waste management systems, leading to low oxygen levels in the water and algae growth. It was also found that many fisheries dump their waste in nearby rivers and water bodies, thus directing the polluted water back into the system for human use. 

Moreover, the study found contamination via human defecation in some of the fish farms. In Tamil Nadu, researchers observed people bathing in and around fish farms using soaps. Waste dumps near or inside fish farms were found in Bihar and Bengal. 

The farms in Bihar, Tamil Nadu and

Agro Universities, Packaging & Labelling, R&D, Supply Chain

WayCool will invest around Rs 2 million over 3 years in this association 

WayCool Foods has signed a 3-year MoU with IIT Hyderabad (IIT-H) to develop antimicrobial food packaging material by using biopolymers. The MoU was signed and exchanged between Karthik Jayaraman, CEO, WayCool Foods and Sumohana Channappayya, Dean (R&D), IIT-H in Hyderabad.

The aim is to develop economically viable and biodegradable packaging that will retain the freshness of fruits and vegetables longer, leading to a reduction in food wastage across the supply chain by up to 20 per cent. This packing material will enhance the shelf life of mainstream fruits and vegetables such as okra, capsicum, Indian gooseberry, and guava as well as exotic produce such as strawberry and broccoli. WayCool will invest close to INR 2 million over a period of 3 years of this association.

 Vignesh Kumar Manogaran, EVP, WayCool Foods, said, “From inception, WayCool Foods has been actively working towards reducing food wastage on multiple fronts. The association with IIT Hyderabad to co-develop a sustainable alternate packaging solution further supplements our in-house R&D and Innovation efforts. The collaboration will help us work closely with the bright minds of India’s premier institutions and strengthen industry-academia linkage.”

In the drive towards creating a social impact, WayCool has a farmer engagement program, Outgrow, that engages with farmers through the entire cultivation cycle, from planning to inputs to harvesting. In the process, WayCool helps to substantially increase farmer profitability, reduce risk, and guarantees 270 days of steady income to farmers by leveraging a host of emerging technologies to measure soil health, ensure quality of inputs, capture agricultural practices, and measure output quality.

During the MoU signing, Dr Mudrika Khandelwal, The Cellulose Group (Head), IIT Hyderabad said, “Biopolymer is an environment friendly food packaging material. We are happy to collaborate with WayCool Foods to develop this unique solution to enhance product shelf-life whilst also reducing the overall carbon footprint related to food packaging. It is important to devise ways to create uncompromised innovations that meet our sustainability goals while providing customer-focused solutions.”

 

 

WayCool will invest around Rs 2 million

AgroPolicy

The state food authorities to include programs related to animal husbandry, agriculture, pesticide usage

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has recently written a letter to the Food Safety Commissioners of different states for an awareness and training program about ‘Good Agricultural Practices’ and the FSS Act for the primary producers to look into the problem of contaminants and residues of various pesticides post-harvesting.

The letter added that the programs can be organized in collaboration with state departments of animal husbandry, agriculture, fisheries, dairying, Krishi Vigyan Kendra and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research.

The matter gained popularity after the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health observed that harmful contaminants and components enter the food system during the time of primary production. Food authorities were asked to ensure that the food was safe right from the start of the food chain and that they needed to work closely with the primary producers.

Once the food enters the food value chain, FSSAI being the apex food regulator, regulates and monitors the contaminants and maximum residue limits for various pesticides in farm produce.

An official informed that FSSAI has issued various codes of exercises under the Food Safety Management System for fish, fish products, meat, meat products, milk, milk products, and so on, along with vegetable edible oils.

Moreover, FSSAI has also issued a number of guidance materials on major food safety issues pertaining to the primary production level regarding metal aflatoxins, pesticides, contaminants, and the issue of formalin.

The state food authorities to include programs

Trade

Companies with exposure to fats, oils, hides, and hemp can hedge their exposure using similar concepts.

Beginning in 2021, for the first time, commercial entities that wanted to hedge or trade organic corn or organic soybeans will have that opportunity using The Jacobsen, US data via Stableprice.com. Farmers, Merchandisers, Traders, Crushers, and Consumer who transact conventional grains have benefited from their ability to hedge their risks using the derivatives markets.

This first-of-its-kind product will finally enable organic grain traders to trade derivatives using the most trusted publishing company in the business. The products available are both call options and put options. Trade options with Stableprice.com, will face a counterpart backed by triple-rated insurance companies, including AON. This product provides the peace of mind the industry has been waiting for. 

Additionally, companies with exposure to fats, oils, hides, and hemp can hedge their exposure using similar concepts. The Jacobsen is one of the few companies meeting IOSCO compliance, considered the most trusted commodity price discovery source.

Companies with exposure to fats, oils, hides,

North America

The company has expanded geographically into new markets including South America

US-based Verdesian Life Sciences, a leading platform that develops patented biological, nutritional, fertilizer enhancers, seed treatment and inoculant technologies for high-value specialty crops, row crops, and turf and ornamental markets, has recently announced that it has entered into a definitive stock purchase agreement with funds managed by AEA Investors LP (AEA). Verdesian’s management team, including President and CEO Kenny Avery, will continue to lead the company following the close of the transaction.

Verdesian has grown into a market leader in Nutrient Use Efficiency by executing on a multi-pronged go-to-market strategy, completing six add-on acquisitions, and developing best-in-class products. The company has expanded geographically into new markets, including South America, and has filed more than 290 patents since 2014. With more than 240 employees around the world, a diverse portfolio of plant nutrient offerings and a stronger financial foundation to scale the business, Verdesian is poised for its next phase of growth.

“AEA is the right partner to help us continue scaling Verdesian and doing what we do better than anyone else: offering Nutrient Use Efficiency technologies for growers all over the world,” said Avery. “With AEA, we are gaining a global partner who recognizes the potential of our products and will support our growth, both organically and through strategic investments, in North America and around the world. We are proud of what we have accomplished since our founding and have had a very successful partnership with Paine Schwartz. Looking ahead, we are excited to work with AEA as we continue to provide critical products to farmers that increase their productivity, profitability and ability to do so sustainably.”

 

The company has expanded geographically into new

Agrotech, R&D

Regulatory modernization could create a more predictable, effective, safe, transparent as well as timelier path to market globally for agriculture innovation

Brussels based CropLife International has announced the publication of peer-reviewed recommendations to modernise the regulation of genetically modified crops in the open access Journal of Regulatory Science.

“As part of our purpose to advance innovation in agriculture for a sustainable future and ensure we play a leading role in enabling a sustainable food system, CropLife International is pleased to share the results of joint experts’ efforts — working together with over 50 industry scientists. These findings will provide a basis for future discussions and open collaborations between stakeholders and governments around modernizing approaches to regulating genetically modified crops, to make new agricultural innovations readily and widely available for all,” said Laurie Goodwin, Director of Regulatory Affairs at CropLife International.

Regulatory modernization could create a more predictable, effective, safe, transparent as well as timelier path to market globally for agriculture innovations. These innovations are critical to contributing to the achievement of food systems sustainability as they provide solutions for farmers to address a changing climate while meeting growing food demand within the limitations of our planet.

The papers serve to continue to open a dialogue with stakeholders and governments to deliver on the need to modernize the approach to the assessment of genetically modified crops.

Regulatory modernization could create a more predictable,

Agro Universities, Dairy, Live Stock, R&D

ICAR-NRCM Hyderabad organises national workshop on ’Sustainability of Buffalo Sector in India’. 

 

 

The ICAR-National Academy of Agricultural Research Management, Hyderabad; ICAR-National Research Centre on Meat, Hyderabad; NAAS-Hyderabad Chapter and Indian Meat Science Association jointly organized the National Workshop and Consultations on “Scientific Interventions and Policies for Strengthening of Buffalo Meat Sector: Catalyst for Boosting India’s Agro-Economy”.

 Dr. Inderjeet Singh, Vice-Chancellor, Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana, Punjab marked his presence as the Chief Guest along with Dr. Lakshma Reddy, Director, Veterinary & Animal Husbandry Department, Government of Telangana as the Guest of Honour of the occasion.

 During the inaugural session, Dr. Ch. Srinivasa Rao, Director, ICAR-NAARM, Hyderabad felicitated the winners of the Essay Writing Competition conducted among the students from State Agricultural Universities of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Dr. Rao released the Policy Document on “Policy Issues and Stakeholder requirements in Indian meat sector” jointly developed by ICAR-NRC on Meat and ICAR-NAARM, Hyderabad.

 Dr. S.B. Barbuddhe, Director, ICAR-NRC on Meat, Hyderabad convened the workshop. In the inaugural session, all the experts highlighted the potential of Indian Buffalo Meat Sector, contribution of Buffaloes through milk and meat towards nutritional security, value-addition and diversification of food, livelihood opportunities for farmers, etc. 

As a part of the workshop, a separate panel discussion involving more than 30 experts from Research Institutes, Universities, APEDA, Animal Husbandry Departments and Export Meat Plants was also organized on the occasion.

ICAR-NRCM Hyderabad organises national workshop on ’Sustainability

Agro chems – Chemicals, Finance

The company has posted net profit of Rs.252.55 crores for the period ended December 31, 2020 as against net profit of Rs.174.35 crores for the period ended December 31, 2019. 

DCM Shriram Limited has reported total income of Rs.2175.76 crores during Q3 FY20-21 ended December 31, 2020 as compared to Rs.2064.61 crores during the period ended September 30, 2020.

The company has posted net profit of Rs.252.55 crores for the period ended December 31, 2020 as against net profit of Rs.118.37 crores for the period ended September 30, 2020.

DCM Shriram has reported total income of Rs.2175.76 crores during the period ended December 31, 2020 as compared to Rs.2229.49 crores during the period ended December 31, 2019. The company has posted net profit of Rs.252.55 crores for the period ended December 31, 2020 as against net profit of Rs.174.35 crores for the period ended December 31, 2019.

Commenting on the performance for the quarter and 9M ending December 2020, in a joint statement,  Ajay Shriram, Chairman & Senior Managing Director, and  Vikram Shriram, Vice  Chairman & Managing Director, said, “The Company has witnessed a sequential improvement in its quarterly performance as the challenges  posed by Covid-19 reduced. This quarter has been particularly robust wherein almost all are businesses operated at normal levels.” 

 He also added that given our resilient performance in last nine months, our balance sheet strength, stable free cash-flows and the improvement in economic environment, the board has approved investment in Chemical downstream products of Epichlorohydrine, Hydrogen Peroxide and expansion of Aluminium Chloride.  Further, it has also approved setting up a research and development centre for Chemicals business to enable forward integration of current & pipeline products as well as to develop other value added chemical products. These steps augur well for growth and strengthening of our Chemicals business.

Chlor-alkali business continues to face headwinds of supply being in excess of demand leading to subdued prices. Our efforts on cost optimization in the past and going forward will ensure reasonable margins and competitiveness. 120 MW Coal based Power plant at Bharuch is under implementation and 66 MW plant at Kota was implemented last year, these are significant steps in this direction. Going forward chlorine utilization (partly) in ECH will further strengthen the business.

Sugar business will utilize Ajbapur distillery for full current season, which along with better ethanol prices will help in partly offsetting the impact of lower sugar cane recovery. 

Shriram farm solutions, Bioseed and Fenesta are focusing on expanding the product portfolio and market development activities which will enable them to enhance their growth momentum.”

The company has posted net profit of