Agri Udaan Scheme

Agri Udaan is a Food and Agribusiness Accelerator flagship program open for ‘scale-up’ stage start-ups in India. The first flagship program was launched by a-IDEA, NAARM in 2015 and since then, four subsequent versions of the Agri Udaan Food and Agribusiness Accelerator programs have been launched in India.

Agri Udaan scheme is open to scale-up start-ups developing innovative food and agribusiness products and services. We have shared further information about the Agri Udaan flagship program, its objectives, and its phases here.

What is Agri Udaan?

Agri Udaan is a mentorship program for scale-up start-ups developing innovative food and agribusiness products and services. Sponsored by the Department of Science and Technology and conducted by a-IDEA, NAARM's Technology Business Incubator, the Agri Udaan scheme has benefitted hundreds of start-ups since its launch in 2015.

Agri Udaan offers start-ups a platform to get mentorship and connect with possible investors in their innovative food and agribusiness products or services. Entrepreneurs can receive useful feedback on their developments in the Agri Udaan meets.

Agri Udaan - Who can Apply?

The Agri Udaan scheme is beneficial but not open to all. It targets a limited number of food and agribusiness entrepreneurs. Even in that category, it is open to those entrepreneurs who are developing innovative, industry-altering products and services. Here is the complete list of people who can apply for Agri Udaan -

• Entrepreneurs with a ‘scale-up’ start-up who are developing innovative products and services in the food and agribusiness industry.
• Entrepreneurs who are looking for market traction for their product or service.
• Entrepreneurs with a full-time team.

Agri Udaan - Phases

The Agri Udaan Scheme is a specialized initiative that aims to help companies scale up to improve their overall development. The more than 7,500 incubators in existence focus on providing early-stage support to businesses throughout their incubation programs. Here are the details about the different phases of Agri Udaan -

• In 2015, a-IDEA, NAARM created the Agri Udaan, a signature Food and Agribusiness Accelerator. The initiative was developed in collaboration with CIIE and IIM-A. 20 entrepreneurs were tutored, and 8 start-ups were funded out of 192 applicants.
• In 2017, the Department of Science and Technology, in collaboration with Caspian, Yes Bank, Marico, and NeML, launched the second series of the Food and Agribusiness Accelerator, dubbed "Agri Udaan 2.0."
• In collaboration with NABARD, Caspian, AgrInnovate, Omnivore, and other major partners, a-IDEA, NAARM, and DST created the Agri Udaan, Food and Agribusiness Accelerator 3.0 in 2019. On May 17th, 2021, ICAR-NAARM introduced AGRI UDAAN 4.0. And in August 2022, Agri Udaann 5.0 was introduced.

Agri Udaan - Phase 2.0

The ICAR-NAARM Technology Business Incubator (TBI), a-IDEA, and the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad's (IIM-A) incubator Center for Innovation, Incubation, and Entrepreneurship unveiled the 'Agri Udaan'- Food and Agribusiness Accelerator 2.0. (CIIE) in 2017. Here are the details of this flagship program -

• The goal of the Agri Udaan Programme 2.0, a 6-month initiative programme, was to assist chosen innovative companies in scaling up their businesses in the agriculture value chain to boost agricultural productivity.
• Agri Udaan Programme 2.0 received over 579 applications, of which 40 were mentored, and ten were picked for further help, with four firms receiving investments totalling around 6.25 crore INR.
• Following that, certain start-ups were assisted with regulatory services such as corporate registration, environmental compliance, etc. The entrepreneurs were also advised on how to write a realistic business strategy, do risk analysis, manage funds, commercialize technologies, and engage customers.

Agri Udaan - Phase 3.0

Agri Udaan Programme 3.0 was a four to six-month programme that began on 31st August 2019 in Hyderabad to receive applications from businesses trying to grow in the agri-tech area and give them support by bringing in ideas from all over the country. Here are more details about this phase of the Agri Udaan flagship program -

• Roadshows were held in Bangalore, Pune, Bihar, Lucknow, Gurugram, Bhopal, and Guwahati as part of this initiative.
• The 6th roadshow, which took place in Bhopal on 23rd September 2019, drew enthusiastic responses from a wide range of start-up entrepreneurs, investors, corporations, government officials, and other start-up ecosystem stakeholders, who shared their thoughts and opinions on critical aspects of food and agribusiness start-ups.
• Renewable inputs, animal husbandry, unique food and supply chain technology, smart farming, Agri fintech, and Agri biotech were among the key focal areas of the Agri Udaan Programme 3.0.

Agri Udaan - Phase 4.0

The 4th edition of a-IDEA's accelerator programme, the Udaan Agriculture Food and Agribusiness Accelerator, was launched in May 2021. Agri Udaan Programme 4.0 brings together a wide group of partners to form an equitable and inclusive ecosystem aimed at scaling up Food and Agribusiness companies through intensive mentoring, industry networking and investor pitching.

The purpose of the Agri Udaan Programme is to attract young people across rural India and other parts of the world who have good business ideas and to assist them in turning those ideas into profitable enterprises.

Agri Udaan - 5.0

Launched by a-IDEA, ICAR-NAARM with the support of NABARD, AGRI UDAAN 5.0 Food and Agribusiness Accelerator Programme is open to scale-up start-ups. The program is inviting applications from food and agribusiness start-ups across the country to offer them mentorship, industry networking, and investment opportunities to selected startups.

FAQs on Agri Udaan

Q.1. What is Agri Udaan?

Agri Udaan is a mentorship program for start-ups working in the food and agribusiness industry. Agri Udaan was introduced by the a-IDEA, ICAR-NAARM with the support of NABARD in 2015. To date, five versions of the Agri Udaan program have benefitted several hundred entrepreneurs to scale up their food and agribusiness start-ups.

Q2. When was the Agri Udaan scheme launched?

The first series of the Agri Udaan Programme was introduced in 2015 by the a-IDEA, ICAR-NAARM with the support of NABARD. This was followed by the second series in 2017. The third season, Agri Udaan 3.0, debuted in August 2019. Subsequently, Agri Udaan 4.0 was launched in May 2021, and Agri Udaan 5.0 was recently launched in August 2022.

Q.3. Which ministry oversees the Agri Udaan Programme?

The Agri Udaan scheme is run by the Indian government's Department of Science and Technology. The Agri Udaan is aimed at agricultural start-ups that are developing innovative products or services in the domain of food and agribusinesses.

Q.4. Why was Agri Udaan launched?

Agri Udaan - a flagship program was launched by a-IDEA and NAARM in 2015 to offer support to start-ups developing products in the food and agribusiness industry. Agri Udaan offers opportunities for industry networking, investor-investee meetups, and direct investment from sponsors.