Govt Awards 12 Startups for Innovation in Animal Husbandry, Dairy Sector

The government on Friday gave awards to 12 startups for finding innovative solutions to address problems faced by the animal husbandry and dairy sector, a statement said.

Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Giriraj Singh announced the winners of 'Startup India-Animal Husbandry Grand Challenge'. 

The ministry in partnership with Startup India had launched the 'Animal Husbandry Startup Grand Challenge' to scout for innovative and commercially viable solutions to address the problems faced by the animal husbandry and dairy sector. 

The challenge was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September last year at a national animal disease control programme in Mathura. 

As many as 157 applications were received in this competition. 

"The 12 startups...will be given cash grants worth Rs 1,02,00,000," the statement said. 

Under value-added products category, the winner was Krushak Mitra Agro Services Pvt Ltd, Mumbai, while Studio Carbon, Ahmedabad, was the runner-up. 

In the category of eliminating milk adulteration, White Gold Technologies LLP, Mumbai & Micro Life Innovations, Chennai were selected. 

For breed improvement, Adis Technologies, Belagavi, Karnataka and CisGEN Biotech Discoveries Pvt Ltd, Chennai were awarded. 

Under animal nutrition,  Krimanshi Technologies Pvt Ltd, Jodhpur and 2. Cornext Agri Products Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad were selected. 

For finding e-commerce solutions, MoooFarm, Gurugram, Haryana and AKM Technologies Pvt Ltd, Cuttack got the award. 

Under product traceability, EmerTech Solutions Pvt Ltd, Mumbai and NebulARC Technologies Pvt Ltd, Delhi were selected. 

No startup got an award in the category 'single use plastic alternatives'. "Two winners under each problem awarded with cash grants worth Rs  10 lakh (Winner) and Rs 7 lakh (Runner-up)," the statement said. 

The winners will be provided incubation offers. The incubator would be responsible for physical incubation of these startups for up to 3 months, mentor matchmaking, lab facility and testing facilities. 

The activities of the startups will be tracked  for up to nine months after the completion of the programme. PTI MJH

Animal Science Firm Tropical Animal Genetics' Innovative Tech Platform to Double Dairy Farmers Income in India

Tropical Animal Genetics (TAG), a Gurugram-based livestock technology company pioneering innovations to ensure sustainable and profitable income to the dairy farmers, today has announced the launch of its latest Patented technology platform “Tropical Bovine Genetics (TBG)”.

Tropical Animal Genetics’ (TAG) innovative product profile is committed to doubling the Indian dairy farmers’ income with a mantra of assured genetics with Embryo Technology (ET) and assured lactation with Pregnancy Free Lactation (PFL).

Tropical Animal Genetics (TAG) is an animal sciences company focused on transforming the future of protein production by pioneering innovations in dairy, aqua, and poultry farming.

TAG has strategic and technology partnerships with Transova Genetics Inc, USA, Roslin Institute University of Edinburgh, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), IIT Madras and National Center for Biological Sciences (NCBS).

The company’s dual technology – (1) Affordable Assured Genetics with ET and (2) Assured lactation with PFL, will increase rural employment, provide safe milk to the consumers and will save the environment.

• Affordable Assured Genetics – Poor genetics of the herd results in low milk productivity per animal. TAG has industrialized sexed embryo technology allowing dairy farmers to access high productivity cows at affordable prices. Embryo derived milking cows (EDM) ensures dairy farmer will double his profits as compared to cows derived from Artificial Insemination (AI) using sperms. This is because only embryos give 100% genetics while AI gives 50% of the genetics.


• Assured Lactation – PFL technology does not require a pregnancy in a cow in order to produce milk. Instead, lactation is induced by mimicking the conditions of pregnancy. PFL is a groundbreaking solution that extends the productive life of a cow till the end of her life. This addresses the stray cattle problem in India as it will convert infertile animals into productive cattle. It will also help gaushalas become profitable.

Announcing the TAG’s innovative technologies, Dr. Pravin Kini, Managing Director, Tropical Animal Genetics said, “Our vision is to provide the right genetics for dairy in India that will help farmers secure a life of abundance and prosperity. We aspire to bring Indian farmers guaranteed pregnancies and better genetics.”

Dr. Bruce Whitelaw, Professor Animal Biotech, Univestity of Edinburgh and Future Technology Architect, TAG said, “Our R&D in India and UK will bring more advances to dairy farmers by further reducing costs of producing safe milk for the consumer while increasing farmer’s income.”

Dr Tom Mercuro, President, Transova Technologies said, “We are very excited about bringing Transova’s expertise to India and working with TAG to help in their goal of doubling farmer’s income.”

Mr. Srinivas Aluri, CoFounder TAG said “TAG is a new age Indian startup that is harnessing the power of deep technology to create positive social impact.”

TAG’s technologies also benefit the climate by reducing the number of unproductive animals. PFL will make infertile animals productive. Benefits of lower cattle population include reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and slowing of deforestation. TAG’s superior technology helps Bovine Breeder farmers convert sexed embryo to an embryo derived milch cow for sale to a dairy farmer, thus creating a new breed of rural entrepreneurs and generating employment opportunities. TAG is also working on a rural entrepreneurship program to create jobs by providing business and technical training.
About TAG: (Tropical Animal Genetics)

Tropical Animal Genetics a livestock technology company pioneering innovations for a sustainable food secure future. TAG’s Product TBG (Tropical Bovine Genetics) is committed to doubling the Indian dairy Farmers income with a mantra of assured genetics plus assured lactation to get assured revenue. The company’s technologies - affordable assured genetics and pregnancy free lactation for assured lactation will double farmer income, increase rural employment, provide safe milk to the consumers and save the environment.

~ Business Wire India

India Dairy Alternatives Market to Grow at over 20% CAGR till 2024 - Research

Rising awareness towards healthy lifestyle products coupled with increasing health consciousness to drive India dairy alternative market through 2024.

According to TechSci Research report, “India Dairy Alternative Market By Type, By Formulation Type, By Distribution Channel, Competition, Forecast & Opportunities, 2024”, India dairy alternative market is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 20% during 2019-2024, on the back of increasing participation of the young population in sports and fitness activities and rising inclination towards low fat milk beverages. Moreover, increasing demand for alternatives to carbonated beverages is further expected to have a positive impact on India dairy alternative market during the forecast period. Some of the leading players in India dairy alternative market are Hershey India Private Limited, Life Health Foods (India) Private Limited, Rakyan Beverages Private Limited, Dabur India Ltd., Tilda Hain Celestial, etc.

Browse market data Tables and Figures spread through  Pages and an in-depth TOC on " India Dairy Alternative Market "

By distribution channel, India dairy alternative market has been categorized into supermarket/hypermarket, grocery/convenience store, online and others. The grocery/convenience store accounted for majority share of around 64% in India dairy alternatives market in 2018. Online sales channel is witnessing a healthy growth, owing to growing popularity of the e-commerce market. Among regions, North India dominates India dairy alternative market and is expected to maintain its position during forecast period as well. The demand for dairy alternatives in the North region is being driven by the availability of several options in the category as well as robust distribution channel of the major players in the market.

According to TechSci Research “Grocery/Convenience Store is the most popular sales channel in India dairy alternative market and is anticipated to maintain its position in the coming years as well. However, Supermarket/Hypermarket is expected to exhibit the fastest growth during forecast period on account of rising preference for the sales channel among urban population and availability of a variety of options under one roof.” said Mr. Karan Chechi Research Director with TechSci Research, a research based global management consulting firm.

“India Dairy Alternative Market By Type, By Formulation Type, By Distribution Channel, Competition, Forecast & Opportunities, 2024” has evaluated the future growth potential of India dairy alternative market and provides statistics and information on market size, structure and future market growth. The report intends to provide cutting-edge market intelligence and help decision makers take sound investment decisions. Besides, the report also identifies and analyzes the emerging trends along with essential drivers, challenges and opportunities in India dairy alternative market.

TechSci Research is a leading global market research firm publishing premium market research reports. Serving 700 global clients with more than 600 premium market research studies, TechSci Research is serving clients across 11 different industrial verticals. TechSci Research specializes in research-based consulting assignments in high growth and emerging markets, leading technologies and niche applications. Our workforce of more than 100 fulltime Analysts and Consultants employing innovative research solutions and tracking global and country specific high growth markets helps TechSci clients to lead rather than follow market trends.

IIT-Madras Incubated Dairy-Tech Startup Stellapps Raises $14 Mn from Gates Foundation, IndusAge Partners

Bangalore-based dairy technology startup Stellapps Technologies has raised $14 million in one of the largest equity funding rounds led by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and IndusAge Partners, among others.

IIT-Madras incubated Stellapps Technologies, which is also backed by Flipkart executive chairman Binny Bansal, is touted to be one of the largest dairy IoT platforms in India. The startup had raised seed funding of undisclosed amount from Omnivore Partners, in January 2013.

Founded in 2011 by a group of IITians -- Ranjith Mukundan, Mr. Ravishankar G. Shiroor, Praveen Nale, Mr. Ramakrishna Adukuri, and Venkatesh Seshasayee, Stellapps is an India's first of its kind end-to-end dairy technology solutions company. Their concept includes a Wi-Fi sensor module, a wiimote and IoT router that can be used for smart automatic milk collection unit and cold-chain monitoring, as part of Stellapps IoT platform.

The freshly raised capital will be used by the startup for monitoring the quantity and quality of milk, storage facilities, creating wearable devices for tracking cattle health and infrastructure for housing the cattle. The startup is aiming to focus is on reducing costs for the farmer by ensuring there are higher milk yields and consistent health of their cattle.

In 2017, the company raised an undisclosed amount in a round led by Blume Ventures, along with participation by Binny Bansal, Flipkart Group CEO. In the same year, Stellapps was also the part of Qualcomm Design in India Challenge-II.

Most recently, the startup was selected for IE20 programme's 20 startups selected across India to set up their businesses in London, United Kingdom.

Stellapps' clients include private dairies and dairy farms operating across India, Russia, France and Nepal, among other countries. Currently, Stellapps’ products include various applications for milk production, procurement, cold-chain management, a farmer wallet and cattle insurance application.

According to experts, the Indian government controls approximately 40% of the dairy market. The dairy market in India is largely controlled by the government but there are still a few players emerging in the Indian dairy IoT sector. "The provision of software cloud services speeds up the process, so we can see state governments partnering with startups in this space," said a VC investors tracking dairy technology space.

Speaking about the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, it is a private foundation founded by Bill Gates and his wife in year 2000.

Last July, the foundation along with India's Department of Biotechnology had announced a $100,000 award for researchers who are able to come up with some never before seen or heard innovations in health including mental health. Prior to this, in 2016, the foundation had given a grant to Bangalore-based Bempu Health Private Limited for their brilliant concept of saving the lives of the newborn babies in developing countries.

The foundation has earlier funded a project called – “Nano Membrane Toilet” or Water-less Toilet which will be able to treat human waste on-site without external energy or water.

[Top Image - Stellapps co-founders Praveen Nale, Venkatesh Seshasayee, Ramakrishna Adukuri, Ravishankar Shiroor and Ranjith Mukundan | Via - RA Chandroo @Outlookbusiness.com]

IIT-Madras Incubated Dairy-Tech Startup Stellapps Raises $14 Mn from Gates Foundation, IndusAge Partners

Bangalore-based dairy technology startup Stellapps Technologies has raised $14 million in one of the largest equity funding rounds led by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and IndusAge Partners, among others.

IIT-Madras incubated Stellapps Technologies, which is also backed by Flipkart executive chairman Binny Bansal, is touted to be one of the largest dairy IoT platforms in India. The startup had raised seed funding of undisclosed amount from Omnivore Partners, in January 2013.

Founded in 2011 by a group of IITians -- Ranjith Mukundan, Mr. Ravishankar G. Shiroor, Praveen Nale, Mr. Ramakrishna Adukuri, and Venkatesh Seshasayee, Stellapps is an India's first of its kind end-to-end dairy technology solutions company. Their concept includes a Wi-Fi sensor module, a wiimote and IoT router that can be used for smart automatic milk collection unit and cold-chain monitoring, as part of Stellapps IoT platform.

The freshly raised capital will be used by the startup for monitoring the quantity and quality of milk, storage facilities, creating wearable devices for tracking cattle health and infrastructure for housing the cattle. The startup is aiming to focus is on reducing costs for the farmer by ensuring there are higher milk yields and consistent health of their cattle.

In 2017, the company raised an undisclosed amount in a round led by Blume Ventures, along with participation by Binny Bansal, Flipkart Group CEO. In the same year, Stellapps was also the part of Qualcomm Design in India Challenge-II.

Most recently, the startup was selected for IE20 programme's 20 startups selected across India to set up their businesses in London, United Kingdom.

Stellapps' clients include private dairies and dairy farms operating across India, Russia, France and Nepal, among other countries. Currently, Stellapps’ products include various applications for milk production, procurement, cold-chain management, a farmer wallet and cattle insurance application.

According to experts, the Indian government controls approximately 40% of the dairy market. The dairy market in India is largely controlled by the government but there are still a few players emerging in the Indian dairy IoT sector. "The provision of software cloud services speeds up the process, so we can see state governments partnering with startups in this space," said a VC investors tracking dairy technology space.

Speaking about the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, it is a private foundation founded by Bill Gates and his wife in year 2000.

Last July, the foundation along with India's Department of Biotechnology had announced a $100,000 award for researchers who are able to come up with some never before seen or heard innovations in health including mental health. Prior to this, in 2016, the foundation had given a grant to Bangalore-based Bempu Health Private Limited for their brilliant concept of saving the lives of the newborn babies in developing countries.

The foundation has earlier funded a project called – “Nano Membrane Toilet” or Water-less Toilet which will be able to treat human waste on-site without external energy or water.

[Top Image - Stellapps co-founders Praveen Nale, Venkatesh Seshasayee, Ramakrishna Adukuri, Ravishankar Shiroor and Ranjith Mukundan | Via - RA Chandroo @Outlookbusiness.com]