Aspada commits $3.3m to India agri-tech business

EM3 provides "pay-for-use" on-farm services, using modern agricultural machines and technology, delivered by its own personnel. The services are aimed at farmers who cannot afford the machines and equipment needed to increase yield and productivity.

The company operates under the brand name Samadhan, running a network of farm services centers called Samandhan Kendras. Each center delivers a suite of basic and precision agri operations.

EM3 - which has been operating in Madhya Pradesh for over a year - plans to use the investment to create a pan-India network of Kendras. The extra capital will also go towards building the comany's team, improving technology, enhance soil and chemistry research, and augmenting its product portfolio.

"Pay-for-use service models are, by far, the only solution to the enduring challenge of raising farm productivity without burdening the farmer with significant capital expenditure," said Adwitiya Mal, executive director of EM3 AgriServices, in a statement. "So far, only adjacent opportunities in agriculture such as cold chains and warehouses have drawn serious interest from investors."

Aspada is targeting investments in India across agricultural supply chains, logistics, financial services, education, and healthcare. It also manages the portfolio of the SONG Fund, an early stage venture capital firm backed by the Soros Economic Development Fund, Omidyar Network and Google.

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• Topics
• South Asia
• Industrials
• Expansion
• India
• Agriculture
• Aspada Investments
• Growth capital