The story of this entrepreneur from Srinivas Nagar, Ballari, Karnataka contains many chapters. From being a school teacher to working as a tailor and then starting a food processing business, Mrs. N Vani Pushpa (46) has dabbled into multiple roles and continues to share her experiences with those who could benefit from her learnings. She always had an inclination towards the upliftment of society with a key focus on empowering the girls and ladies of the village. During the day she would teach in a school and in the evening, she would work as a tailor.
After working tirelessly for 9 years, she decided to take up tailoring full-time and train the women of the village. To take things one step further, she joined Sharada Devi Self Help Group in 2017 whose aim was to provide training to women in different domains like tailoring, food processing, etc. With the SHG members, she started to do Pickle-making and made Fig Pickle, Lemon Pickle and Mango Pickle.
Her husband Mr. Nalla Gangadhar (50) was engaged in the cultivation of Figs on leased farmland. The COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on his business and the revenue generated by the low sale of Figs was not able to suffice the cultivation expenses. The couple started to look for an alternative that would meet the needs of the household. During this period, they attended a training session on the value-addition of Figs conducted by ICAR-Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Hagari. Through the training program, they also came to know about the market potential of processed food products.
They started experimenting with processing small quantities of Figs to make Fig Jam and gave samples to local stores, retail outlets and in wholesale. One of the challenges they faced was the transportation of the product during the pandemic. Therefore, they also listed their products on e-commerce platforms like Amazon and requested their friends & family members to spread the word about their products. The overwhelmingly positive response from the customers encouraged them to kick-start their business and led to the establishment of Jayashree Products in July 2020.
The business started to gain momentum and the demand for the products increased. They realized that in order to scale up their operations, they would need to purchase additional machinery and for that purpose, they would require financial support. Through the Department of Agriculture, Ballari, they came to know about the PM Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme. As soon as they came to know about the various benefits provided under the PMFME Scheme, they decided to apply for the credit-linked subsidy support. Upon receiving a bank loan of Rs. 3,60,000 under the PMFME Scheme in Sept 2021, they purchased several machines and equipment like Tray Dryer, Extra Trays, Mixer, Utilities, Packing Material, Packing Machine, Weighing Machine, and Blower.
The machinery enabled them to automate a lot of the processes that were initially being done manually and helped them to increase the overall efficiency of the enterprise. They were also able to improve the quality of the product and the packaging. They are selling the products under the brand name “Nutri Power” and over the period, they have expanded their product portfolio and included products like Fig Rolls and Fig Barfi. From processing 10kg per day manually which would require 3 additional days for the drying process, they are now able to process 15kg per day with the drying process being done in mere 24 hours. The enterprise also witnessed an increase in revenue generation from Rs. 3000 per day to Rs. 5000 per day and the profit of the enterprise also doubled from Rs. 1500 per day to Rs. 3000 per day with the plant being operational for 20 to 25 days a month.
The enterprise is marketing its products in several districts in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Through e-commerce platforms, they are also marketing products in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra. They aspire to expand their product portfolio and market their products in international markets. The financial turnover of Jayasree Products for FY 2021-22 was Rs. 6,00,000.
(Content shared by Karnataka State Agricultural Produce Processing & Export Corporation Limited)