Akshayakalpa Organic inaugurates Model Organic Dairy Farm in Tamilnadu for its expansion plans
Introduces Signature Dairy Farming Model in Pooriyambakkam, Changalpattu District, Tamil Nadu. New farm to replicate the best practices created in its Tiptur farm in Karnataka. Plans to build a cluster of over 300 strong far mers in five years
Chennai, 31 January 2023: Akshayakalpa Organic, India’s first certified organic dairy company and producer of the country’s most popular organic milk, today established a stronger footprint in Tamil Nadu with the inaugurat ion of its Model Organic Dairy Farm in Pooriyambakkam village in Changalpattu District, located 90 KMS south of Chennai.
Named Akshayakalpa Velan Kudil or ‘farmer’s home’, the new model farm is a replica of its highly successful mot her farm in Tiptur in Karnataka. Akshayakalpa works with more than 850 farmers Karnataka and with 300 farm ers in Tamil Nadu, Chengalpattu District. Akshayakalpa expects to deliver fresh and healthy organic milk and da iry products to more than 2,00,000 discerning customers over the next five years.
The new farm was inaugurated by Shri. Oliver Ballhatchet, British Deputy High Commissioner to Tamil Nadu an d Puducherry, as the UK’s development finance institution British International Investment (BII) is a major inves tor in Akshayakalpa Organic. BII joined Akshayakalpa Organic in September 2022, as a key investor along with Rainmatter Foundation, and existing investor Venture Dairy to help fulfill its promise to promote, support, and grow sustainable and regenerative farming while providing access to premium organic milk to its consumers. In its Series B funding round, Akshayakalpa raised $15 million from BII and other investors and has been able to fu rther bring alive its vision to transform livelihood-based agriculture into wealth-creation opportunities for sm al l and marginal farmers and make farming an aspirational vocation for future generations. Today, Akshayaka lpa is India’s largest organic milk producer in the country catering to more than 60,000 consumers in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad.
Shri Shashi Kumar, CEO, and Co-founder, Akshayakalpa Organic said, “Health-conscious consumers are a growi ng tribe in India that will one day in the near future be strong enough to mainstream organic food in the cou ntry. This movement also presents a historic opportunity to bring best practices into Indian dairy farms and im prove the economic conditions of our farmers. Additionally, organic farming helps in soil conservation and cre ates a po sitive impact on climate change. Akshayakalpa Velan Kudil will work with farmers in Tamil Nadu to ach ieve the same level of success their counterparts in the Tiptur cluster have achieved. Our success in Karnataka is a good measure of what we expect to do and achieve in Tamil Nadu. We are also delighted at the prospect of expanding our consumer family and winning more hearts in the state.”
Shri Oliver Ballhatchet, British Deputy High Commissioner to India, said: “Through BII’s investment, the British Government is proud to support pioneering companies like Akshayakalpa Organic, who are working to ensure sustainable farming practices which will help to improve food security in India. The UK remains committed to so lving the biggest global development challenges by supporting productive, sustainable, and inclusive economic outcomes for all.”
Shri Manav Bansal, Managing Director and Head of India at BII, said, “The inauguration of the Model Organic Dai ry Farm is an exciting milestone in our investment with Akshayakalpa and is an example of how our capital can b ring about development impact in India. This new farm will not only help to support food security and bring nut ritious dairy products to millions of people in India but will improve the livelihood of farmers across the region and inspire the next generation of sustainable smallholder farmers.”
Started in 2010 with just three farmers, the Akshayakalpa has since transformed the fortunes of hundreds of far mers in Tiptur with an average three-fold increase in monthly revenue to around INR 100,000. This success has been achieved largely due to the support of consumers willing to pay a better price for high-quality and nutritio us organic milk and dairy products and the Akshayakalpa model that provides multiple sources of income outsid e the basic revenue from selling milk. Typical Akshayakalpa farmers also grow and sell organic vegetables, coco nuts, honey, and eggs to supplement their daily income from dairy.
Akshayakalpa has also created new benchmarks for sustainable farm practices that help produce milk and milk pr oducts that are free from antibiotics and chemical pesticide residue. After more than a decade since deliveri ng its first packet of raw milk in 2010, Akshayakalpa Organic has grown into a 700-member plus team of dedicat ed women and men from a wide range of socio-economic and cultural backgrounds ensuring they move ahead in their mission that justifies the name Akshayakalpa or ‘Infinite Possibilities’.
