Global Innovation Fund and Aspada Invest $10 Million in EM3

BANGALORE, August 9, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

EM3 AgriServices, India's leading private sector farm mechanization services company has raised a $10 million Series B round from London-based Global Innovation Fund (GIF) and existing investor Aspada. The company had earlier raised a $3.3 million Series A from Aspada in June 2015.

EM3 AgriServices is India's first provider of farm services for the entire cultivation cycle, on a pay-per-use basis. With two-thirds of India's farms smaller than a hectare, most of India's small-hold farmers rely on manual labour as they cannot afford capital equipment such as advanced farm implements, tractors and harvesters. EM3 solves this problem by offering an entire range of interventions from soil preparation to harvesting, where farmers pay a service fee calculated on a per hour or per acre basis. These services often are cheaper than hiring manual labour, with service levels guaranteed by the company.

At a time when Indian agriculture is seeking structural solutions, marquee investors believe that addressing key fundamental aspects will allow the country to usher in the next green revolution. With this investment, EM3 will expand geographically across the country, boost ecosystem capacity and invest in building technology. With a strong established footprint in Central India, EM3 has also recently partnered with the State government of Rajasthan to provide services to farmers across the entire state.

According to Adwitiya Mal, CEO, EM3, "The next farm revolution is taking place through access to mechanization. However, with a disorganized mechanization ecosystem today, the rural economy is not able to fully realize its potential. We are pleased that GIF and Aspada are investing in building tomorrow's farm economy."

Kartik Srivatsa, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Aspada, said, "Over the last 2 years, EM3 has been able prove out its pioneering model of Farming-as-a-Service (FaaS) to emerge as the leading independent farm services player in India. We now embark on the next phase to rapidly scale the FaaS model as well as our mobile platform for small-hold farmers to access services across the agriculture value chain. The company's proprietary access to farm level data through its operations places it in a unique position to become a canonical leader in the sector."

Alix Peterson Zwane, Chief Executive Officer, Global Innovation Fund, said, "We were impressed by the potential of EM3's pioneering approach towards solving one of Indian agriculture's most fundamental challenges. As they embark on their next phase of growth, we look forward to EM3 continuing to be a market leader in a rapidly growing market in a sector critical to India and its millions of small-hold farmers."

According to EM3's founder and Managing Director, Rohtash Mal, "We are very excited to now have GIF as an integral part of the EM3 growth story. In both GIF and Aspada we have partners who are thought leaders for cutting-edge innovations and long-term collaborators. EM3 is committed to providing every farmer an opportunity to use farm services at a price point and convenience that will improve his yields and enable him to aspire for more crop variations with better economic value. We value the foresight of GIF and Aspada in understanding the untapped potential of this huge market."

About EM3 AgriServices 

Founded in 2014, EM3 AgriServices is India's first provider of farm services on pay-per-use basis. Services are provided for the entire cultivation cycle including land development, land preparation, seeding, sowing, planting, crop care, harvesting and post-harvest field management. Farmers are able to access EM3's services digitally through a mobile app or physically by contacting a 'Samadhan Kendra', the company's local fulfillment center. Having serviced over 8,000 farms through 10 farm service centers since inception, EM3 has validated the feasibility of a model that brings affordable and reliable mechanization as a pay-per-use service to small-hold farmers.

For more information, please visit: http://www.em3agri.com

About Aspada 

Aspada Investment Company is a holding company and venture capital investor with a significant commitment from the Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF). The firm is an active investor in India, with investments across agricultural supply chains, logistics, financial services, education, and healthcare. Aspada also manages the portfolio of SONG, an early stage venture capital fund backed by the Soros Economic Development Fund, Omidyar Network, and Google.

For more information, please visit: http://www.aspada.com

About Global Innovation Fund 

The Global Innovation Fund (GIF) is an innovation fund that invests in the piloting, rigorous testing, and scaling of innovations targeted at improving the lives of the poorest people in developing countries. GIF aims to support a portfolio of innovations that collectively open up opportunities and improve lives for millions of people across the developing world. The fund is created and supported by USAID, UKAID, Govts of Sweden and Australia and the Omidyar network.

For more information, please visit: http://www.globalinnovation.fund

Media Contact:
Vaidhehi Ravindran
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Aspada Investment Advisors