Agritech sector in India is growing at a year-on-year rate of 25 per cent, according to a latest report by the industry body National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM).
In the past few years, the sector has witnessed some of global and sector-focused investments in agritech start-ups, said the report titled – “Agritech in India: Emerging Trends in 2019.”
Currently, the country is home to more than 450 agritech start-ups, it added.
Till June 2019, the agritech sector in Indian has received over US$ 248 million funding, recording an increase of 300 per cent over a year ago.
According to the report, with the recent growth in investment, 48 percent CEOs in agritech sector believe that they will become the agritech unicorn in the coming two-three years.
Shift towards digital transformation
Commenting on the findings, Debjani Ghosh, President, NASSCOM, said, “India’s agriculture sector is advancing steadily towards its digital transformation and the start-up ecosystem is playing a critical role here, bringing innovation and disruption in much-needed areas.”
“Adoption of technology in agriculture has always needed a structured institutional focus and technology firms are trying to break into the agricultural landscape using newer business models. The findings of the report are testimony to the potential of the agritech industry and the opportunities that India presents in the agriculture and farming landscape,” said Ghosh.
With the local farmers increasingly adopting innovative start-up solutions, there has been a significant shift recorded from B2C to B2B start-ups, the report noted.
Investors as well as corporates are playing a crucial role in supporting this with B2B start-ups received more than US$ 200 million worth of investments in the past 18 months, making the segment a major revenue creator 0in the overall agritech sector.
In the past five years, over five international agritech companies have ventured in the country, as compared to over 25 Indian agritech companies with international presence.
More and more Indian companies are looking at international markets to expand with a focus on regions such as Europe, South East Asia, Africa and South America, the report said.
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