Sanket Mehta, Co-Founder, Nutrifresh

20 Apr 2022 , 12:39 PM

In an interaction with Mamta Maity, indiainfoline.com, Mr.Sanket Mehta, Co-Founder, Nutrifresh said “Nutrifresh is the only hydroponic unit in India which grows and sells 42+ different SKUs to satisfy needs to various customers and is the biggest Hydroponic Project in India and has patronized production, marketing and distribution by women.”

What was the motivation behind the company’s inception?

Nutrifresh was launched with the idea to provide Healthy, Pesticide Free and Residue Free Food to various consumers at large. The best thing available in the market was Organic Produce. The deeper knowledge in Organic Produce leads us to believe that, “is the Produce Really Organic?” and that’s when we came across Hydroponic Farming. It is more Controlled, Précised and Traceable. Not to mention, unsolicited Consultants make the Project seem far than viable. However, with Economics of Scale, Healthy, Fresh and Nutrient Rich Exotic Fruits and Vegetables will be in everybody’s reach.

What is the USP of Nutrifresh?

At Nutrifresh Hydroponic Farm, we use Controlled Atmosphere with the help of Polyhouses & Insect Net. We use RO purified Water and most importantly SOILLESS FARMING. Entire Supply chain from Farm to Fork is less than 24 Hours and Minimal or NO Hand Touch. The entire Post Harvest Practices is done by Nutrifresh Team and it is not outsourced. Due to these reasons, Nutrifresh has been able to achieve superior Quality and Freshness. Besides, Hydroponic Farming will also help in establishing regular and steady income for Farmers. These types of Cultivations help in up scaling per unit production up to 10 times, utilizes 90% less water and entire produce is Pesticide Free. Nutrifresh makes use of nutrient rich water which is RO purified to help plants grow enabling entire produce to be freshly harvested and delivered at households within 24 hours of its harvest. The entire produce is harvested, sorted and packed at a world class facility at India’s state of the art and biggest hydroponic project and shipped to Mumbai and Pune.

What are the company’s vision and strategies for your growth?

Every household in Tier I, II & III cities will utilize Fresh and Hygienic Produce at one point of time. Due to its Controlled Environment and Precision Farming, dependency on monsoon is substantially reduced. Due to Staggered and Controlled Production, demand and supply of the produce can be controlled and regulated. Prices and Availability of the Vegetables will be consistent throughout. Therefore, Hydroponics Farming has dual benefit from Customers as well as Farmers side. As far as Potential of Hydroponic Fruits and Vegetables is concerned, we are still ahead of the time. However, it is not far when people will understand importance of Fresh & Nutritious Food in their daily lives. Due to the high Set up Cost in Hydroponic Farming, the cost of Produce is still high. At Nutrifresh, there is minimum or no hand touching of the vegetables and once packed at the farm, these veggies are opened at consumer’s place only.

What are the new challenges and opportunities post-pandemic?

Nutrifresh had made agreements with modern trade, but they cancelled them during the pandemic because they were unsure how things would turn out. At this point, we begin selling produce from small stalls with the B2C angle in mind which has given rise to the B2C verticle with the pandemic. Following the pandemic, the entire chain of B2C vertical began. In the last two and a half years, Nutrifresh has delivered to 15000 households and has now established an entire chain, including a packaging and a logistics industry developed in collaboration with the agriculture industry.

Can you throw light on your recent initiatives?

Nutrifresh has taken up a great initiative by forming a mom centric distribution network which was working since the pandemic to deliver Hydroponic Veggies to 5000+ Households in Mumbai and Pune. Nutrifresh encouraged women entrepreneurship advocating a healthy lifestyle for moms of today, enabled availability of fresh, rich in nutrients and pesticide free produce of vegetables with 10 + mothers as homemakers through Tigressmoms. Nutrifresh is the only hydroponic unit in India which grows and sells 42+ different SKUs to satisfy needs to various customers and is the biggest Hydroponic Project in India and has patronized production, marketing and distribution by women.