From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network

Bengaluru, Sep 8: Akshayakalpa Organic, India's first certified organic dairy enterprise , offering organic milk and milk products free from antibiotics, synthetic additives, hormones and chemical pesticide residue has announced the raising of $15 million in Series B funding round from both existing and new investors.

British International Investment, UK's development finance institution, Rainmatter Foundation, and its existing investor Venture Dairy have joined the Series B financing to help fulfil Akshayakalpa’s promise to promote, support and grow sustainable and regenerative farming while providing premium organic milk to its consumers.

Veda Corporate Advisors was the exclusive financial advisor to Akshayakalpa and its shareholders. Before this, Akshayakalpa Organic raised Series A funding from Lok Capital and Venture Dairy in July 2019.

With support from reputed organizations with a proven track record for enabling growth in the ventures they back, Akshayakalpa Organic will be able to add more impetus to its farmer entrepreneurship initiatives.

This will ensure that every bit of harvest from the Akshayakalpa trained farmers are true to the land and the customers but also drives focus on restoring the dignity and respect that the farming profession deserves.

Founded by Dr GNS Reddy and Shashi Kumar, Akshayakalpa Organic is the biggest organic milk producer in the country and has seen significant growth at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 60%+ in the last five years.

Akshayakalpa plans to aggressively invest in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad markets, expand into new geographies of Pune, Mumbai and Kochi and take its long-shelf Organic Dairy products pan India. Akshayakalpa Organic works with 750 plus farmer families.

It supplies organic milk and milk products to 60,000+ consumers daily in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai through its direct delivery platform. Its products are available across 2,000 plus retail outlets and all the major e-commerce/quick commerce platforms.

"We are delighted to partner with like-minded organizations. Over the last few years, consumers have become more conscious about living healthier lifestyles. With support from British International Investment, Rainmatter, and Venture Dairy, we hope to continue retaining the uncompromised quality of our products. We will continue to serve more customers while deepening our efforts to create sustainable farming systems and restore dignity to rural India," said Shashi, Co-founder and CEO at Akshayakalpa Organic.

"British International Investment is delighted to invest in Akshayakalpa, a company at the forefront of sustainable agriculture in India and working in the interests of farmers and consumers. We recognize the company's potential to build a thematic portfolio within the fast-growing food industry and in an increasingly consumer-conscious market. We are happy that our capital will support its expansion, increase productivity and improve income for farmers while also bringing sustainably farmed products directly to more consumers." explains Manav Bansal, Managing Director and Head of India, BII.

Nithin Kamath, Founder and CEO of Zerodha and Rainmatter, explained: "The more I learnt from Shashi and his team about what goes into the process of milk production, I have been conscious about how it is sourced. The processes they have in place to ensure sustainable milk production and the support they offer to improve farmer livelihoods are impressive. We are excited to support them on this journey."

Sameer Shisodia, CEO of Rainmatter Foundation, adds, “Sustainable farming practices are key to ensuring food security for our next generation and happy to see Akshayakalpa taking the lead in that space. We believe this investment will go a long way to demonstrate that development can lead to commercial success."

Dr Trevor Tomkins, Founder of Venture Dairy, says, “The Indian Dairy industry is witnessing robust growth. Organic products are in demand for their health attributes. We strongly support the company for the differences it is making. Venture Dairy has been a shareholder in Akshayakalpa since the early days, and we are delighted now to support this development and the opportunity for rapid growth. Congratulations to Shashi Kumar, CEO, and his team at Akshayakalpa."