Farmdar uses deep-tech with high-res, multi-band satellite imagery to create actionable data for farmers and corporates. These insights have a direct impact on the efficiency and profitability of corporates and farmers of various sizes.
The round has been led by Indus Valley Capital with participation by strategic investors from Pakistan, the Middle East, and US, including Deosai Ventures, Tricap Investments, United Distributors Pakistan Limited, The Community Fund VC, LMKR and K2 Global Ventures.
Launched in 2021 by childhood friends Muhammed Bukhari, Muzaffar Manghi and Ibrahim Bokhari who himself is a third-generation large farmer, the Farmdar journey began when the founders started exporting produce and discovered that Pakistani produce was considered low quality in the UK and UAE markets. The founders vowed to do something about it. “We looked at supply chain improvements first, like cold chain, which allowed us to extend shelf life but our underlying quality was still poor. We then tried remote sensing and precision agriculture technology and it created a step change in quality and yield whilst reducing our input costs” said Ibrahim.
“Pakistan is amongst the top 10 producers in the world for essential crops such as sugarcane, wheat and rice, yet in terms of yield we rank 50th or below. It’s a massive yield gap. Farmdar is in a unique position to help increase yield and quality while reducing farming costs and minimizing waste. Pakistan is well placed to be a regional and global agricultural leader but this can only happen if the data is accurate and can be utilized in a timely manner. That’s where Farmdar comes in.”
quotes Manghi.
In light of a rapidly growing global population, Farmdar’s vision is to create a food-secure world and empower farmers in Pakistan with technology to gain control over their produce and its true value. Inherently, there is a human impact, and to that end, many data points for individual farmers will be free of cost, as is registration on the Farmdar web app. Corporate farms, food processors, food companies and mills requiring more elaborate data and insight will be engaged with bespoke solutions and subscriptions.
By yield increase with waste and input reduction, Farmdar’s data also helps reduce the impact of agricultural activity on climate change and it’s the only agritech in Pakistan to be a part of the Greentech Alliance.
“Simply using more land to grow more food isn’t the solution, it’s devastating for climate change”
quotes Muhammed.
“Farmdar uses artificial intelligence to create data that helps optimize crop productivity by increasing yield, reducing harvest loss and input costs and monitoring diseases. We knew that this data was of immense value, but were surprised to see the widespread appetite for data both on the individual farmer and the corporate side. Accurate data at scale doesn’t really exist in Pakistan”.
Lead investor Aatif Awan adds:
“Agriculture is arguably the top sector in Pakistan to benefit from technology. Pakistan lags materially in crop yields relative to most large countries due to lack of access, awareness and adoption of modern technology. We are really excited to help Farmdar close the gap and move the agri sector in Pakistan forward.”
Farmdar’s use of technology with remote sensing through satellites makes their growth scalable and aligns with the vision to solve a global problem of agricultural sustainability. The funding will not only enable Farmdar to scale rapidly across Pakistan and hire and develop the very best tech talent but also apply use cases from Pakistan in foreign markets such as Thailand, Turkey, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Philippines and across the Middle East.
Farmdar is founded by:
Ibrahim Akbar Bukhari, 4th generation farmer, entrepreneur and exporter, domain expertise 15+ years.
Muzaffar Manghi, marketing and advertising executive, ex-GM Leo Burnett, CEO MCS, agriculture landowner. Domain expertise 22+ years: Strategy, Sales, Brand Stewardship, Insight Mining, Team Building.
Muhammed Ali Bukhari, CIMA fellow, ex-McKinsey, ex-GM Commercial British Telecom. Domain expertise 17+ years; Partnerships, Finance, Strategy, Scaling, Farming.
Farmdar | Indus Valley Capital | Deosai | K2 Global ventures | United Distributors Pakistan Limited | The Community Fund VC | LMKR