About
8Villages have a suite of services that benefit smallholder farmers, including Datahub, LISA, KASA and RegoPantes.
LISA is an SMS and online based village information service that enables farmers to join in their agricultural communities. Farmers often do not benefit from transparency or know the best practices needed to use agri business products in efficient and effective ways. LISA solves these problems across multiple dimensions. It can engage directly with any farmer by android application, so they can ask questions real time. Farmers can get closer to the modernization, they can selling their products at fair price and they can live more prosperously.
LISA’s field force solutions help companies develop better surveys, leading to insightful learning from the field which can increasing farmer productivity while improving the company’s profitability.
Progress To Date
8Villages has engaged over 120,000 farmers to date, and has partnerships with Mercy Corps Indonesia, Telco (Telkomsel), Agriculture University, Ministry of Trade and BMKG.
The team are working with ministry of information to reach 1 million farmers in Indonesia.
About
Farmapp is an integrated pest and disease management platform for crops. It combines information from different technological modules such as geo-referenced scouting and spraying apps, soil sensors, and weather stations. Once the information is processed and analysed, it is delivered back to the farmers via email, SMS, and access through the business intelligence platform. This information is used to plan biological controls, analyse and program the spraying of a particular product, monitor the incidence of pests and diseases, and automating greenhouses. The platform is mostly used for protected cropping (greenhouses) and is currently implemented in over 1,500 greenhouses around the world.
Capability and features
Farmers can simplify these processes through the easy to use mobile application. Recording data is easy and more efficient than using traditional methods such as paper, and farmers benefit from satellite maps, soil sensors and weather stations. Farmers can also track the routes and speed of movement of crop sprayers, in order to optimize the quantity of the product supplied and to control the application of agrochemicals and fertilizers in the field. This module significantly reduces the use of agrochemicals and fertilizers in the crop.
Input Retailers have access to real-time user metrics, giving them a better understand of customer needs and empowering them to sell more appropriate products.
Progress to date
Farmapp operates in three continents, with over 80 farms using Farmapp as part of their daily activities. Customers are currently experiencing 20% reductions in plant losses and savings 20% on labour costs.
Farmapp is developing a virtual 24/7 agronomist to support growers with weather, pest and disease management, as well as an interactive school programs that making use of technologies that students use on a daily basis.
The team are currently working on a new “Pesticides Free/Minimal Use Certificate” that will be used by companies, government and customers to get a unique and trusted source of truth about the provenance and practices used to produce the products. The platform allows Farmapp to generate real-time and secure reports that will transform the way people buy food at supermarkets.
About
Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture (SFSA) under its Agricultural Insurance Solutions (AIS) division, offers weather based insurance, to helps growers protect their investment in quality inputs, repay loans even if bad weather damages their crops, and replant at once when germination fails because of irregular rains after planting. SFSA uses state-of-the-art climate and crop models, efficient processing of claims by insurers, and a record of timely pay-outs to underpin a reputation for lean parametric solutions that do not require loss adjustment in the field.
Weather insurance enables farmers to invest, and for this and other reasons is also of interest to governments, donors, international organizations, NGOs working in agriculture, and the agribusiness sector, i.e., input and service companies, commodity off-takers, and financial institutions offering value chain financing and loans to farmers.
Capability and features
Agricultural input companies put a registration card with a unique code in each bag of seed or fertilizer. When a farmers opens the bag at the time of planting, they find the card and follows its instructions on sending an SMS for registration. From this SMS, SFSA knows the farmer’s location and can monitor the rainfall using satellites. The premiums are paid by the input company; while payouts to the farmers are done via mobile money transfer.
SFSA offers smallholders in Asia and Africa a viable tech-based solution using automated weather stations and satellite imagery to monitor crop losses through weather indices developed. The solution solves both the affordability and distribution challenges (through eWallet) that agricultural insurance faces in reaching smallholders. Basic Financial Literacy training are also taken up as a part of the capacity building section of the program.
Progress to date
SFSA has worked with over 2,000,000 farmers across Africa and Asia.Their insurance programs in Bangladesh are set to impact at least 230,000 smallholders by 2021.
SFSA is working to improve the livelihood of end users by creating an application called the Resilience Engine. It is an IT Platform that automates agri-insurance business operation processes and will incorporate all activities including weather database management, pricing process, data collection, mobile phone integration, monitoring and evaluation. The application will also aide in the capacity building process by hosting high quality content for training purposes.
About
Agribuddy connects farmers to resources and networks. Their digital platform is both a mobile application and a web application, which farmers use alongside a “buddy” to store data and order supplies as needed. Agribuddy enables farmers to have access to capital through bank loans, as well as higher quality farm inputs.
Capability and features
Farmers get the necessary inputs to their farming needs as and when required in the value chain. The digital platform understands what farmers need (seeds, pesticides, tractors, etc.) and when they need it, so farmers can focus on farming. This reduces the stress and hassle for the farmers and significantly improves the output in terms of harvest.
Buddies are the main sources of data input into the system, and are mentors to farmers who are learning to use the digital platform. Buddies enable the connection of suppliers to farmers using the platform and also enable all aspects of transaction payment throughout the lifecycle.
Buddies who potentiallycan manage up to 50 farmers get a commission from the farming lifecycle.
The goal is to connect the input suppliers to the digital platform using a cashless transaction system. Agribuddy’s large farmer network boosts their revenues, and in the future all aspects of the transactions will be on the blockchain which improves traceability.
Progress to date
Achievements:
Agribuddy has over 47,000 registered farmers with 4,000 availing fill services, as well as partnerships with banks in Cambodia, Crop insurance companies and local governments.
Upcoming initiatives include credit rating of farmers to enable loans, harvest forecasts, and improved data tracking through IoT sensors and drones.
About
CropBASE is a platform that provides solutions for agricultural diversification. CropBASE includes a global evidence base of key genetic, agronomic and nutritional information on under-utilised crops. Combining this data with climatic, soil and other information will support a range of models to predict the performance of value chains that include under-utilised crops under current and future climate scenarios.
CropBASE has developed an online crop suitability evaluator, based on multi-criteria land suitability methodology and local priorities. The app shortlists potential under-utilised crops that can grow at any location for a range of end uses. CropBASE will help transform agricultural business by improving information flows and reducing production risks using the vast potential of under-utilised crops and information technology.
Capability and features
Governments can improve land related decisions and extend land-use options. The platform simulates crop suitability and demonstrates value-chain traceability from seed to market with emphasis on nutrition. The platform will provide a link between science and local knowledge for the benefit of decision makers that are looking for robust evidence bases to back their decisions.
CropBASE helps extension workers to disseminate information to the end-users including farmers, retailers, buyers and other decision makers about the gaps that exist in knowledge allowing them to communicate the needs better. It provides access to aggregated insights that are generated regionally, allowing quick identification of local issues and their appropriate responses.
Farmers can use location-based insights to see possible business options that are custom-built for their own property given the current soil, climate conditions and future forecasts. This allows them to increase their productivity, add new lines of business and boost their incomes.
Progress to date
CropBASE is currently rolled out in a major plantation and is working with two different categories of farmers. They are collaborating with a consortium of 19 global partners under ‘LANDSUPPORT’ project to develop and test a decision support system (DSS) that enables evaluation of trade-offs between land uses, and are completing cases studies in Malaysia and 3 European countries.
About
GeoTraceability exists to “put smallholders on the map” – giving them the opportunity to participate in supply chains that are connected via data, and to give them the standing as independent businesses. They provide technical solutions that increase the visibility of suppliers and products in complex value chains. GeoTraceability design and implement software solutions for public, private and non-governmental organizations in a variety of sectors, including agriculture, livestock, fishing, forestry and mining. Their data collection tools, traceability systems and online data hosting services enable organizations to collect, process, visualize and analyze data in a cost-effective way, at scale.
GeoTraceability is designed to be affordable, with mills and traders paying fees for an off-the-shelf product and subscription, or requesting system customization where appropriate
Capability and features
Traders are able to trace crops from field to processing plant, monitor and support the smallholder supply base, and pass traceability data to customers. This increases the security of supply through farmer engagement, avoiding illegal crop processing and negative NGO campaigns.
Extension workers use the Farm Business Plan builder to support each individual smallholder with bespoke recommendations for increasing output based on the field data stored in the GeoTraceability database. Extension workers use the software to produce thousands of personalized Farm Business Plans with one click, taking their agronomic advice and training to the next level.
FMCGs have visibility on where the crops in their supply chain originated down to an individual field and farmer. This helps them avoid damaging publicity by being able to demonstrate precisely who is in their supply chain, where they are and how they are supported.
Progress to date
GeoTraceability has been used by Ferrero with 13,000 hazelnut farmers in Turkey, as well as ECom tracing coffee and cocoa from 85,000 smallholder farmers, as well as projects with most of the largest palm companies, including Wilmar, GAR and Cargill. There are over 300,000 farmers with detailed profiles currently in the GeoTraceability database and incorporated in traceable supply chains.
GeoTraceability is currently developing a multi-stakeholder platform that will drive traceability to plantation in the palm oil sector.
About
Eragano offer a range of solutions for farmers who are otherwise trapped by middle men. Eragano connect farmers to lenders, who giving them access soft loans. This helps farmers buy good quality inputs, while they also receive guidance and financial literacy training – all through the mobile app. Their unique formulas and credit scoring methodologies gives them insight into farmers’ specific needs, allowing them to prescribe the most appropriate financial and agricultural products.
Capability and features
Farmers participate in workshops to learn how to use the technology, and are provided ongoing support to build their tech literacy. They are connected to a range of partners; banks for soft loans, open markets for better prices, agricultural experts for relevant advice, and field managers for offline assistance. This frees them from middle men, who use predatory loans and offer low crop prices.
FMCGs can access good quality harvests, since farmers have expert assistance in harvesting and grading their crops. They are also able to bypass middle men, and can ensure that their purchasing in in line with their CSR policies. Eragano generates revenue through these crop sales, whilst ensuring farmers get a much better deal than what they would have otherwise received.
Lenders receive access to trusted and recommended farmers, who will then purchase financial products.
Progress to date
Achievements:
Eragano has over 5,000 farmers to date, with some farmers currently supplying to Unilever. They have been recognised by Swiss Innovation, Women In Tech, Asian Ricebowl Start Up and awarded “Best agriculture startup (Telkomsel Version)”. The team are currently developing Eragano station centres in Indonesia.
About
Cropital is a financial platform for smallholder farmers, serving as an alternative to predatory loan sharks. Cropital enables value chain financing, which improves profitability of farmers and decreases risks for lenders.
Cropital enters a community by establishing a local program that gathers farmer’s details, led by a community manager. Each farmer is assessed and given a credit score, then Cropital makes recommendations to both the farmer and a lender about how a mutually beneficial arrangement can be structured. Funding comes from a crowdsourced pool of lenders, who want to support farmers through fair financing.
Capability and features
Farmers are able to join a contract growing program whereby they have access to low-interest loans (typically at rates of approx. 12%), interventions that can increase yields, appropriate financial products and fair market prices for their harvests.
Lenders may select and lend directly through the Cropital’s crowdfunding platform. Lenders receive impact updates on the farmer they lent money to, along with fixed interest returns, upon farmer’s harvest/payment.
Traders are contract growing partners who commit to purchase the produce of farmers at fair market price. This creates an assurance for specific varieties of crop, which are secured through an agreement as part of the program.
Progress to date
Cropital has raised over USD600k of loans for farmers, and has acquired over 37,000 individual lenders on the platform.
To date, over 600 farmers are onboard.
About
Weather and agriculture solution Agrimedia provides agriculture advisory information services to farmers and input manufacturers. This gives farmers accurate forecasts, and allows them to take appropriate actions that protect the value of their harvests. With a wide range of platforms (SMS, call centre, web and mobile application), farmers can access information in a cheap and efficient manner. This service is currently provided in Vietnam through partnerships with mobile network operators.
Capability and features
Farmers use Agrimedia for weather updates and to receive agriculture advisory information by SMS, call centre or mobile app. This information helps to increase productivity and quality, leading to higher incomes.
Input Manufacturers use Agrimedia for advice on the weather, disease models and irrigation.
This helps them to improve productivity, save money and increase revenues.
Governments can use Agrimedia to broadcast official information to farmers.
Progress to date
Agrimedia has over 1 million users to date, and is currently creating a M2M application which will see them become a B2B agriculture business. It was the first company to have a weather forecast and hydrometeorology license in Vietnam.
Agrimedia has partnerships with Vinaphone, Mobifone, Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture, Pessl Instruments and Weather News.
About
TaniFund is a crowdfunding platform for agricultural activities in Indonesia. TaniFund connects farmers with alternative financing from the broader public. Individuals and/or entities can choose to invest their fund into a cultivation project of their preference. TaniFund’s innovation is a solution for the unbankable smallholders farmers and, at the same time, benefits those with excessive funds with a profitable investment option.
Capability and features
TaniFund’s projects are exclusively for groups of farmers, not individuals. This approach allocates the responsibility to the group in keeping their farmer members in check (i.e. in microfinance, in repayment, whilst in TaniFund’s scheme, in ensuring levels of production).
Funds gathered from the public are not disbursed lump sum at the beginning of the project, unlike most banks and financial institutions, but weekly, according to the farmers needs. These amounts are calculated at the beginning—which then will be included in the prospectus—involving both the farmers and TaniFund’s team, before the project is even posted in TaniFund’s website. One uniqueness of TaniFund is that in this calculation, labor cost of the farmers are included so as to ensure that the farmers have a steady income, to cover their household expenditures.
The project period is designed as to provide more than one harvest, to anticipate any force majeures that can resulted in harvest failure. This is to keep the accountability in ensuring public’s funds invested in TaniFund’s projects. In the anticipation against agriculture practices that are prone to force majeures, is the diversification of projects’ location, so if half a hectare suffers a pest invasion, there is still half that can produce harvests.
The harvest produced from TaniFund projects is absorbed entirely by the marketplace TaniHub, and priced in accordance to TaniHub’s quality standard. This is a mitigation against price volatility in the market in the future (prices are agreed upon during the making of prospectus).
Progress to date
TaniFund has managed to crowdfund USD 1.5 million, distributed to 35 projects. TaniFund is the first winner of Mandiri Finspire and has crowdfunded over USD140,000 in less than 18 hours.
TaniFund has worked with over 855 farmers, and has partnerships with International Finance Corporation (IFC) and several Indonesian banks – channeling their loans to smallholder farmers.
TaniFund is working to incorporate climate smart practice into the projects, as to encourage resilience and climate adaptive practice in Indonesian agriculture landscape.
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