Talks with Saurabh Agrawal
Talks with Saurabh Agrawal
Nitin Puri: Farmers Are India's Most Underrated Entrepreneurs
Nitin Puri: Farmers Are India's Most Underrated Entrepreneurs
Nitin Puri: Farmers Are India's Most Underrated Entrepreneurs
Nearly half of India's workforce is in agriculture. It earns just 18% of the country's GDP. Nitin Puri's entire business is built around closing that gap.
Nitin is the Founder of KisaanSay, a farmer-first food brand that works directly with farming communities to bring authentic, high-quality products to consumers. His core belief, and the thread running through the whole conversation, is that farmers are not just producers; they are business owners who deserve a larger share of the value they create. His work focuses on building better value chains and creating a stronger, more honest connection between the people who grow food and the people who eat it.
Nearly half of India's workforce is in agriculture. It earns just 18% of the country's GDP. Nitin Puri's entire business is built around closing that gap.
Nitin is the Founder of KisaanSay, a farmer-first food brand that works directly with farming communities to bring authentic, high-quality products to consumers. His core belief, and the thread running through the whole conversation, is that farmers are not just producers; they are business owners who deserve a larger share of the value they create. His work focuses on building better value chains and creating a stronger, more honest connection between the people who grow food and the people who eat it.
Background – education and career
Nitin is an IRMA alumnus, which places him squarely in the intellectual lineage of Dr. Verghese Kurien and the cooperative movement that reshaped Indian dairy. That grounding shapes how he thinks about farmer ownership, branding, and pricing, treating them as questions of value chain participation rather than charity or subsidy.
3 key takeaways from the episode
Farmers already do everything entrepreneurs do. They manage risk, make investment decisions, and solve operational problems. What they lack is ownership over branding, pricing, and the customer relationship.
The origin of your food matters more than the label. Nitin makes a detailed case for why reading ingredient lists is not enough, covering GI Tags, the near-disappearance of original Basmati, and why "organic" is not always organic.
India needs productivity, not more farmers. The future of Indian agriculture lies in increasing participation in the value chain, not increasing headcount in the fields.
Books written or mentioned
The conversation draws heavily on the legacy of Dr. Verghese Kurien and the founding story of IRMA rather than a single recommended title.
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