Farmers’ field-to-Mumbai business grows to 480 members, bears Rs 3 crore fruit

MUMBAI: A casual phone chat and a farmer’s quick thinking have turned fortunes for several agriculturists in the state, and what once seemed like a mega crisis has been converted into an opportunity to generate business worth Rs 2.75 crore in just over three months.
Soon after the Covid lockdown was announced in March, farmer Manish More from Otur village in Pune district feared the vegetable crop standing in his field would go unsold.Even as More, who is part of a WhatsApp group of farmers from various districts, was discussing ways to deliver their produce to cities, a relative called up from Mumbai. “He told me of a scarcity of vegetables in the city,” More said. What began as a small initiative with the first order of 60 boxes being despatched on April 9, has expanded to include 480 farmers across WhatsApp groups. They have even developed a brand, KisanKonnect.