Ankur Capital invests in agri-tech company CropIn

Mumbai-based impact investor Ankur Capital has invested Rs 50 lakh ($81,000) in convertible debt in Bangalore-based CropIn Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd, which provides a cloud-based platform to help farmers track their produce and consignment status, for 30 per cent stake, according to a report by The Economic Times.

CropIn was founded in 2010 by Krishna Kumar, who holds a BE in Instrumentation and Electronics from Visvesvaraya Technological University (Bangalore). Prior to setting up this venture, he worked in various roles at General Electric.

CropIn (formerly CropEx) provides agri businesses with the technology and expertise needed to create safer food supply for their consumers. It combines ERP and business intelligence to offer a platform, which has an in-built traceability system, and collaborates with different value chain participants along the supply chain to monitor the status of farm produce. The platform also helps farmers manage the field workforce.

Ankur Capital is a social venture fund that invests in startups that impact low-income communities in India. It provides both financial and technical supports to create sustainable and scalable ventures. Besides CropIn, it also invested Rs 50 lakh each in Daily Dump, a Bangalore-based waste management startup, and Assam-based ERC Eye Care.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)