Thematic Solutions
The SMART AgTech Integration Facility aims to address some of the key challenges faced by CBOs in Maharashtra with the integration of DAT solutions. To address these challenges faced by CBOs, the facility has organized the potential solutions into six key themes that address different challenges faced by the CBOs in their operations across the value chain.
DAT solution providers that offer products or services that cater to the following six broad themes are invited to apply to the SMART Agtech Integration Facility. DAT solution providers can also apply under multiple themes as applicable
THEME 1
Digitization
solutions
Challenge to be addressed: Many CBOs do not have visibility over all their operations due to lack of end-to-end database management and reliance on non-digital records. A majority of the administrative and financial processes are manual, which increases overlaps in processes or leads to multiple record books, and increases chances of errors and inefficiencies. Lack of digitization of the processes makes it difficult for service providers, buyers, and lenders of CBOs to get an overview of their functioning hence increasing the perceived risks of engaging with them.
Areas of focus for this theme: Solutions to support the digitization of farmer data including member details, land and crop profiles, financial details, as well as data on day-to-day operations such as warehousing and inventory, packaging, and labour management, among others.
Potential DAT interventions:
DAT solution providers that offer solutions such as end-to-end enterprise resource planning solutions to digitize CBOs or data-based advisory services for operational decisions, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.
THEME 2
Value chain actor aggregation platforms
Challenge to be addressed: There is a lack of an integrated platform that brings together stakeholders across the agricultural supply chain in the existing ecosystem. These stakeholders include input providers, logistics & transportation providers, exporters, wholesalers, retailers, financial service providers and the farmer members themselves through a single digital platform. In the absence of such a platform, decisions regarding input procurement and market linkages are made without data-driven insights which further leads to inefficiencies in the supply chain.
Areas of focus for this theme: Digital platforms to provide CBOs with an end-to-end understanding of the demand and supply for their produce, and ensure the standardization and good quality of their produce to the end customer. Value chain actors may include input providers, advisory services, buyers and tradesmen, logistics and transportation providers, and financial institutions.
Potential DAT interventions:
DAT solution providers offering end-to-end service aggregator platforms for CBOs to create backward and forward linkages for specific value chains, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.
THEME 3
Precision Agriculture and Automation solutions
Challenge to be addressed: There is a lack of data-driven decision making with respect to weather, pest and disease management, irrigation management, soil-health management, and other good agricultural practices. This makes it difficult to provide farm-level insights to farmers to improve their productivity or reduce their cost of cultivation. The current reliance on manual processes often results in damage to produce, makes it challenging for CBOs adhere to strict norms about quality and quantity of output, and also increases the amount of labour needed and associated costs borne.
Areas of focus for this theme : Use of individual, farm-level, and spatial data using drones and GPS, etc. to guide farmers in adopting production practices, soil management, and nutrient management processes with a view to promote sustainable production, through the use of tools such as IoT devices and other automated equipment.
Potential DAT interventions:
DAT solution providers that offer farm-level soil health data and advisory on appropriate input mixes, use drones and other automated technologies to accurately measure soil moisture and enable targeted spraying of pesticides or for other uses, or provide automated primary processing and quality checking services to reduce wastage at the farm-gate and assure fair prices for produce, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.
THEME 4
Urban food systems and logistics solutions
Challenge to be addressed: CBOs face issues with transporting fresh produce as well as livestock across distances, owing to inadequate availability of standardized and hygienic end-to-end logistics services to manage logistics and transportation from CBOs to markets. There is also a lack of awareness about food and produce certifications required for niche domestic as well as international markets, which makes it difficult for CBOs to meet the needs of such markets and earn premium prices.
CBOs also face issues in accessing rural-urban supply chain management tools and transportation facilities while maintaining the quality for urban consumers. This leads to higher levels of food waste as well as packaging materials waste, as well as a loss of potential to develop ancillary products like compost, bio methane, and energy generation at the local level.
Areas of focus for this theme: Technology solutions that can ensure the availability of healthy food which is sustainable and economically accessible to urban populations. This includes segments like quality checks, standardization, digitization and certification across services in primary processing, processors, storage management and logistics.
Potential DAT interventions
DAT solution providers that offer services such as information services on online platforms to inform CBOs about requisite processes, certifications, and standards required to sell produce in niche domestic and international markets, provide smart transportation solutions that improve the rural-urban logistics of agricultural produce to ensure standardized and hygienic movement to urban markets, or provide waste management solutions for agricultural produce leading to sustainable uses such as composting and energy generation, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.
THEME 5
Market linkage and traceability solutions
Challenge to be addressed: There are inadequate linkages between CBOs and buyers such as processors, retailers, traders, wholesalers, aggregators and corporates, as well as lack of awareness about buyer requirements. Without access to such information, CBOs may be limiting themselves to local or regional markets without exploring the potential of tapping into other domestic markets.
CBOs also face issues with accessing information about the process, guidelines, and requirements involved in the export of agricultural commodities, such as commodity identification and requisite certifications, leading to issues with meeting the requirements and quality standards of overseas buyers.
Areas of focus for this theme: Technologies that trace farm produce from farm to plate, including the provision of information such as production practices used, the nutrition levels of and quality of food, safety of food, and stakeholders involved at each stage of the food chain
Potential DAT interventions:
DAT solution providers that operate online marketplaces connecting CBOs with wholesalers, retailers, and contract buyers and increase the visibility of CBOs in rural and urban markets, offer solutions for digitized records and digital supply chain management to help buyers and end consumers track produce, or offer advisory services which aim to decrease information asymmetry in the supply chain and improve awareness about norms and quality standards for traceability, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.
THEME 6
Access to Financial services
Challenge to be addressed: CBOs face a lack of working capital and long-term capital, which makes it difficult for them to invest in infrastructure and provide auxiliary services to their members. Barriers in accessing formal financing include a lack of data management, limited visibility of member transactions, perceived risk of investment, and lack of collaterals. Further, in the absence of integrated digital platforms that connect stakeholders across the value chain, financial institutions cannot access the data they need to provide a credit score for CBOs.
CBOs also struggle with access to insurance products to mitigate risks related to climate change, transportation, and increased scale of operations. Damage to crops due to weather anomalies may affect their operations by disrupting the supply of commodities and lack of access to insurance products to counter this risk may result in heavy losses and defaults on commitments. Additionally, lack of insurance services may increase the income risks of farmer members that constitute CBOs, leading to a loss of productivity.
Areas of focus for this theme: Interventions such as provision of working capital, long-term capital, and insurance services for CBOs
Potential DAT interventions:
DAT solution providers that use digitized cash flows to help CBOs share financial information with capital providers, offer alternate credit scoring systems that improve ease of access to formal credit, or offer technology enabled insurance products to de-risk CBOs, their member farmers, and financial institutions, among others are welcome to apply under this theme.