Milk Mantra ties up with NSDC, organises learning program for dairy farmers

Daily top-up grocery player Milkbasket, has announced an additional infusion of $7 million to its Series-A funding, led by Mayfield Advisors, a US-based venture capital firm, with participation from existing investors.

The latest round brings Milkbasket's total Series-A funding to $14 million.

“We are excited to support the Milkbasket team in chasing their impressive mission of making grocery delivery as hassle free as possible. Regarded as the future of the industry, The company’s pioneering model has reinvented everyday lives of its customers.” said Nikhil Khattau, MD, Mayfield India

Milkbasket is recording 15 per cent growth month-on-month and has raised a Series-A investment led by Kalaari Capital in May.

In January, it announced a pre-Series-A investment by Unilever Ventures, Blume Ventures and Lenovo Capital.

“The backing from Mayfield validates our model and acknowledges the scale of our ambition. The funding will accelerate our goal of making Milkbasket synonymous with grocery delivery, nationally. The funds will also enable us in investing adequately in developing the technology and hiring for the next growth phase,” added Anant Goel, Founder, Milkbasket.

Start-up dairy firm MilkLane said it has raised Rs 27 crore in a 'pre-Series A' funding round from a clutch of investors. Company, which has raised the fund from Pioneering Ventures, Schreiber Foods and ultra-high net worth families, will utlise the capital for expansion purpose.

In a statement, MilkLane said it will utlise the fund to increase its network of milk collection centers and strengthen its digital and analytics capabilities in the supply chain.

MilkLane COO Gaurav Haran said “We intend to create a pan-India network of industrial production units, village level bulk coolers and introduce IT-enabled solutions to provide a fresh, safe and steady supply of high quality milk to our partners in the industry. MilkLane started its milk collection operations in January 2017 at Kuppam in Andhra Pradesh, and within a span of six months reached an initial milestone of 85,000 litres per day”.

The company procures milk from selected dairy farmers and delivers it to industrial scale off-takers such as industrial processors, FMCG companies and milk product manufacturers.

Maharashtra based milk and dairy products company, Prabhat Dairy Limited is exploring the possibility of setting up unit in Assam.

Chief Marketing Officer and Business Head, Prabhat Dairy Limited, Nidhi Nirmal said “We are exploring the possibility of setting up possessing unit and talks are going on in this regard with the state government. We are eyeing to capture 10 percent of market share by financial year 2019 and firm up the scale in institutional business in Northeast India.The market for UHT (ultra-heat treatment) milk is growing exponentially with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 32 percent and the company aims to be a major contributor to the industry. To achieve the growth targets, the Company has planned to leverage its existing presence in the region by expanding its product portfolio. North East India is one of our primary target markets for our national expansion as it is one of the fastest growing in India, especially in Tetra Pak segment. We have strategized our products in line with the local demand as understand the requirements of the region since we already have presence here for a while. The market for UHT is growing fast and so is the demand for Tetra Paks is emerging as a preferred option of milk consumption in the North Eastern states. Our core focus would be to build Strong Consumer Connect as we are looking to launch more products in the region soon. Company will soon launch a range of value added products in Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Assam and firm up its presence in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra”.

Company currently has two plants in Maharashtra with a daily capacity to process 10 lakh litres of milk and produce 30 tonnes of cheese.

By the end of FY 2018, the company plans to enter and firm up its presence in various Northern, Eastern, Western and Central Indian markets, mainly Tier II and Tier III towns with higher disposable incomes.

Odisha-based dairy startup Milk Mantra Dairy has raised about USD10 million (Rs 66.5 crore) in a fresh round of funding that has been led by State Bank of India-backed Neev Fund.

Existing backers of the seven year-old company, which include Eight Roads Ventures, the proprietary investment arm of global asset management giant Fidelity International, and impact investor Aavishkaar, have also participated in the series-D equity financing round, the proceeds of which will be used by Milk Mantra towards making acquisitions and expanding its footprint across eastern India.

Srikumar Misra, Chief Executive, Milk Mantra, said, "Our whole focus has been to establish our dominance in eastern India… We are looking at multiple acquisitions in Jharkand, Chhattisgarh and Bengal. We are also looking to set up greenfield projects."

This is the first round of funding raised by the company after it mopped up about Rs 80 crore from Eight Roads and Aavishkaar in June 2014. That transaction had a mix of primary and secondary components, which saw the exit of the firm's angel investors, with Aavishkaar also selling the stake held by its previous fund, Aavishkaar India Micro Venture Capital.

The amount raised by Milk Mantra is also part of a larger funding round that is expected to close over the course of the year. Misra, however, declined to provide details of the same. Post the round, Ambalika Banerjee from Neev Fund and Dhyanesh Shah from Eight Roads will join the Bhubaneshwar-headquartered company's board.

RI Bureau

Milk Mantra, with its vision of creating truly pure functional dairy products has brought Suresh C Senapaty on board as an Independent Director.

Senapaty recently superannuated as CFO and Executive Director at Wipro where he spent 35 years working closely with Mr. Premji in managing growth and transitions to take Wipro to the position it is today.

Talking about his decision to join Milk Mantra, Senapaty said, “Milk Mantra's outlier and inclusive growth is an idea that excites me apart from the company being based in my home state. I am happy to join the Board and look forward to a meaningful engagement with Sri and his team to rapidly scale up the venture whilst building a strong governance framework."

Following his superannuation, this is one of Senapaty’s selective board appointments.

Milk Mantra is India’s 1st VC funded agro food start-up which has raised 3 series funding from Fidelity Growth Partners and Aavishkar VC and is fast evolving as an exciting functional dairy food brand in the country. Its 2 flagship brands Milky Moo and MooShake have a strong consumer connect based on the quality of the product and the challenger brand marketing approach.

With a 100% CAGR over past years and on track to reach Rs.125crs revenue this year, Milk Mantra has expanded its portfolio of products beyond Odisha to Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ranchi. It's unique Ethical Milk Sourcing network has grown to 35,000 farmers.

Shedding more light on this decision, Srikumar Misra, Founder & CEO, Milk Mantra, said, “I am very pleased to welcome Suresh Senapaty to our Board. There is a strong alignment in our conscious capitalist philosophy of building a scalable brand and venture and Senapaty's mindset of bringing his deep experience to an organisation which can be fast growing and yet create significant meaningful impact across the value chain both on the consumer and farmer side."