Agritech Startup Vegrow Raises $46 Mn From GIC, Others To Expand Presence

Chifu Agritech Pvt Ltd, which operates business-to-business (B2B) fruits marketplace Vegrow, has marked the final close of its Series C funding round in a mix of primary and secondary infusions.

The new fundraise of $46 Mn (around INR 383 Cr) was led by Singapore-based GIC, marking its maiden bet on India’s agritech space. Existing investors Prosus Ventures, Matrix Partners India, Elevation Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners also participated in the round.

The Bengaluru-based startup will use the fresh capital to expand its India footprint and fortify its global network.

The secondary round provided a complete exit to many of the angel investors in the startup, while Ankur Capital, Titan Capital and Better Capital partially exited the startup.

Founded by Praneeth Kumar, Mrudhukar Batchu, Kiran Naik and Shobhit Jain in 2020, Vegrow offers a range of tech solutions such as crop advisory, grading, packaging, logistics and sales to farmers to help them cope with supply chain challenges.

“Through the extensive utilisation of data and technology, we provide valuable insights and optimise supply chain challenges, such as reducing perishable inventory wastage to only one-fourth of the industry average and consistently achieving industry-leading profit margins,” said Batchu.

Vegrow works on the idea of streamlining the highly fragmented and localised fruit cultivation ecosystem, which is characterised by the involvement of multiple intermediaries facilitating transactions. By leveraging tech and data, the company aims to maximise farmers’ income by accurately grading produce and efficiently matching it with the most suitable demand channel, it said in a statement on Wednesday (December 13). 

The startup claims to have witnessed a five-fold increase in revenue and achieved operational profitability over the last year. 

In July last year, the startup raised $25 Mn funding in Series B funding round led by Prosus Ventures to expand its geographic presence, develop its tech stack and hire across multiple positions. 

The latest development comes at a time when the agritech landscape in the country is buzzing with activities. While farming in the country is largely dependent on use of archaic tools and often impacted by the vagaries of weather, agritech startups are trying to change the situation through the use of technology. This has also attracted interest from investors as well as corporates.

For instance, in September, agritech startup Ergos raised $10 Mn through a mix of equity and debt in its Series B funding round. The round was led by Norway-based Abler Nordic, and existing investors such as Aavishkaar Capital, Chiratae Ventures and Trifecta Venture Debt Fund.

In the same month, full-stack agritech startup Leads Connect raised INR 500 Cr ($62.5 Mn) from FMCG major BL Agro Industries. BL Agro is expected to infuse funds over a span of three years, eventually acquiring a controlling stake in the startup.

As per Inc42 data, homegrown agritech startups secured $2.1 Bn between 2014 and May 2023.

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