Farmers Fresh Zone Reduces The Farm-To-Fork Grind By 66%, Improves Profit Margins

Based on a model of local production for local consumption, FFZ helps optimise farmers’ incomes and ensures delivery of fresh produce in less than 20 hours after harvesting

Pradeep PS was worried when his uncle, a farmer by profession, told him that the bulk agri produce failed to fetch the minimum support price (MSP) due to a lack of demand. Keen to help his uncle and other farmers in a similar plight, the IT professional decided to digitalise the offline farmers’ market to bring them better margins. Soon, he launched Farmers Fresh Zone (FFZ), an agri brand that procures local and fresh produce such as fruits and vegetables, sells online and makes time-bound doorstep deliveries.

In FY22, the D2C brand clocked INR 12 Cr in revenue, a 71% jump from INR 7 Cr in the previous financial year. Overall, it has sold 12 Mn products and catered to 60K customers. Built on the core value of promoting farmers’ welfare, FFZ claims to have created 200+ direct jobs, positively impacted 2K+ farming families and increased farmers’ income by 15% across Kerala. It acquired AM Needs in 2022 for INR 15.95 Cr to expand to the dairy segment, taking its SKUs to 230. AM founders Sujith Sudhakaran and Ranjith Balan also came on board as cofounders of FFZ.

FFZ’s AI-driven platform analyses user requirements and product availability to match local demand and supply and fetch good prices. The D2C brand claims that its farmer partners follow good production practices and undergo regular supervision to validate that the produce does not contain harsh chemicals and pesticides. A QR code also comes with each order, letting one trace the products back to their sources to enhance the buyer’s trust.

To grow its fresh milk business, FFZ will launch a ‘micro-entrepreneur’ scheme in 2023, where it will tie up with locals from tier 2 and 3 cities in Kerala for hyperlocal deliveries. This will help the D2C brand scale its business as it eyes INR 1K Cr in revenue in the next five years.