Farmer groups expand business outreach via ONDC

Farmer groups expand business outreach via ONDC

A large number of farmers’ collectives across states are now able to sell a host of unique agricultural products including rice, honey, millets, mushrooms and spices on the government’s pan-India e-commerce platform – Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC).

Since the farmers producer organisation (FPOs) joined the ONDC platform in April, 2023, 3200 such bodies so far have sold as many as 3,100 varieties of value-added agricultural products across states.

ONDC supports and trains FPOs, free registration, in developing and digitisation of product catalogues, generating shipping labels, identifying delivery partners and facilitating digital payments so that they leverage the platform for marketing of their product.

“Collective of small farmers get access to digital marketplace without any cost while the consumers get products such as 200 odd varieties of rice as well as a range of unique food products sourced from various regions delivered at home,” an agriculture ministry official told FE.

The network has more than 30 odd digital applications including Mystore, PayTM, Maginpin and Delhivery in the spheres of intercity logistics provider, platform for buyers and sellers and others.

In the last one month, Rich Returns, Kota, Rajasthan based FPOs has sold Rs 2,00,000 worth of chana and garlic papards and millets based products through Mystore. “We have also received orders from the Indian army on Government e Marketplace (GeM) supplying papads,” “Hari Om Nagar, ceo, Rich Returns, said.

Within just six months on coming on board, Aryahi Fed Farmers Producer Company, a Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh based collective of 673 farmers, one of the first to sell more than Rs 5,00,000 worth of honey and millets valued added products through Mystore.

A farmers collective Daringbadi Farmers Producer Company, based in Kandhamal district, Odisha sold Geographical Indication (GI) tagged turmeric power to buyers across 11 states using the online platform of Mystore.

Several agricultural products including ragi powder, aromatic rice varieties and dried fish have been sold through ONDC platform.

“Since on board of ONDC earlier this year, we have reported a combined sales of Rs 4 million and the target is increase sales to Rs 10 million in 2024,” Tapas Kumar Pati, chief operating officer, BASIX Krishi Samruddhi , a group which has supported 59 FPO into ONDC in Odisha, West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

He said initially FPOs used services of India Post for delivery of the products because of the large network but subsequently other logistic partners have been added ensuring quicker delivery of products to consumers.

In April 2022, the government had launched ONDC, as a section 8 company established by the department for promotion of industry and internal trade. Recently tech giant Meta had announced a partnership with ONDC to upskill small businesses including FPOs.

For FPOs, the digital network provides direct access to digital marketing, online payment, business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer transactions, and encourages local value addition, catalyzing growth of logistics in rural areas.

Farmers said that the government now must provide support to FPOs to sell their products on the Government e-Marketplace portal, used for public procurement by central and state government agencies.