Omnivore, a venture capital firm that specialises in agritech, has announced the first closing of its third fund at $150 million (about Rs. 1,250 crore). The Omnivore Agritech & Climate Sustainability Fund, established in April 2022, will keep a focus on entrepreneurs creating ground-breaking innovations for food, agriculture, the environment, and rural economies.
With its third fund, Omnivore anticipates making 25 to 30 new investments in agri-tech startups and MSMEs (micro, small, and medium-sized businesses), with initial check amounts ranging between $1 million and $5 million. Agriculture that is more climate-smart, rural fintech, and agrifood life sciences are some of the major issues for future investments.
In the first close of the third fund, investors included KfW, the Self-Reliant India (SRI) Fund, FMO, SIFEM, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), with assistance from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Inclusive Agritech Facility, Louis Dreyfus Company Ventures, the Dutch Good Growth Fund (DGGF), the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries (BIO), and Yara Growth Ventures.
The negative effects of climate change pose the biggest risk and potential for Indian agriculture. By supporting businesses that address climate mitigation and adaptation, our new fund will have a deeper focus on accelerating climate action in agriculture, according to Mark Kahn, managing partner at Omnivore. By December, the third fund’s final close is most likely to be completed by the venture capital firm.
The goal of Omnivore, a company created in 2011 by Kahn and Jinesh Shah, is to support Indian companies that are constructing the food and agriculture systems of the future.
Over the past ten years, Omnivore has supported over 40 firms that are improving farming’s profitability, resiliency, sustainability, and climate resilience. Omnivore was the first agritech investment pioneer in India. Having reached a final closure in April 2019, Omnivore’s second fund’s $82 million in funding was raised.
According to Shah, Managing Partner at Omnivore, “We are grateful to our investors who share Omnivore’s vision of making India an agritech superpower that positively impacts the lives of smallholder farmers worldwide.”
Among the firms in Omnivore’s portfolio are DeHaat, Arya, Stellapps, Reshamandi, Ecozen, Aquaconnect, and Pixxel. Two agritech firms were exited by Omnivore during the course of the past year, providing its investors with significant gains. The largest exit in Indian agritech history was achieved by Omnivore in July 2022 when it sold its interest in the IoT aquaculture start-up Eruvaka to Nutreco, a leading worldwide provider of animal nutrition and aquaculture. Later, in March 2023, Omnivore sold its interest in the maker of precision sprayers, MITRA, to agricultural machinery behemoth Mahindra.
