Urban farming gets futuristic makeover

Sriram Gopal, CEO of Future Farms in Chennai says, “I had started an IT firm in 2007, but I always had the idea to do something radically different that would add value to society. That was when I also started growing concerned about the foods that we were consuming. I realised that the presence of pesticides and fertilisers were doing us more harm than good. And there was also the growing disconnect between the farmers and the end consumer. During this time, I chanced upon the subject of hydroponics. The technology has been around for more than three decades, but I couldn’t find anyone in India who had taken this up.” Having set his mind upon embarking on this new adventure, that Sriram defines as so disruptive, that it’s a matter of pride, even if one fails in it, he enlisted the help of his father A Gopalakrishnan, a veteran of the indigenous photocopying industry. 

Following this, Sriram has assembled a 12-member strong team comprising people with multiple specialities. The services that they offer include hydroponics, garden automation, greenhouse facilities and related urban gardening products. One of their flagship products is the hydro vertical farm system, which essentially lets you build your own rooftop farm without breaking into a sweat. There are also DIY hydroponic starter kits to help newcomers get a hang of urban farming. Speaking about their clientele, Sriram tells us, “Our customers comprise people who don’t buy our products because of ‘what’ we make, but because of ‘why’ we make it. We are working with one subsidiary/partner of McDonalds. We just secured a project from the Adani Group for the Bhuj Mundra Port. A lot of corporates are showing interest –  we have a partner in Malaysia who wants to take our products there. We sell kits to eight states in India right now.”