Muralee Manohar: Improving Agricultural Production With Sustainable Methods
Muralee Manohar & Sanitha Manohar
Managing Partners
Muralee Manohar is the Managing Partner at farm Tech consultancy and brings to the table years of industry experience working for giants in agriculture in GCC. Muralee has a master’s degree in Horticulture Science and through his work aims to enhance the quality of life of farmers and society.
In an indepth conversation with CEO Insights Magazine, Muralee shares with us his professional journey and the various lessons he has gathered on the way. Here is an excerpt from the interview .
Tell us about your professional journey and what inspired you to establish farm tech consultancy.
After completing my masters in Horticulture Science from Kerala Agricultural University, I joined the Vegetable and fruit promotion council, Kerala where I was working as an assistant manager for field centers. In 2008, I moved to Oman and started working with Tawoos Agriculture Systems, which is one of the biggest farming projects in the Middle East with a high level of Farm Mechanization. Within a year, I was promoted to the post of Senior Production Manager at Tawoos Agriculture Systems and was able to contribute heavily to the success of the project. In 2013, I started working for Water and Life Agriculture, the biggest hydroponic greenhouse project of 10 hectares at that time, which was a joint venture between the Oman and Qatar government.
Later in 2016, I joined Themar Group of companies as Assistant General Manager, handling their greenhouse and landscape operations. In 2018, I quit my job and started along with my wife and Managing Partner,
Sanitha Manohar, our own company called Farm Tech Consultancy, which is registered in India and for our Oman operations,Tech Farming International where we are performing technical consultancy, turnkey projects for hydroponic greenhouses and commercial farms. We are also having a joint venture with Unicorn, Oman called Unicorn Farm Tech in Oman for importing Hi-tech farming technologies and tools to Oman commercial farming projects. Earlier the hydroponic technologies were provided by European Companies making them expensive and we wanted to bring forward ways that could be affordable even for small farms and also suitable for the local climaticconditions. We have expanded our operations to Africa in the year 2022 and currently we are working on a hydroponic greenhouse project in Botswana. Also we have taken up reviving one of the biggest hydroponic greenhouse project in Kerala, in Kalpeta, Wayanad.
You have almost two decades of industry experience, what is your success mantra?
determination to achieve the set goals have been my success mantra. Dedication and determination become part of the solution and if I set my heart on some thing and want to achieve it, I stand firmly by my decisions.
In what ways is sustainability reflected in the operations that are carried out by Farm Tech Consultancy?
Due to the scarcity of resources in the Middle East like expensive labor, and lack of water, sustainability is our priority. Farm Tech is a specialist in Hydroponics, Aquaponics, and plant factory projects and is backed by a decade of experience in handling projects in the toughest conditions. We can design greenhouses for the cultivation of crops in soil and soilless conditions based on the client’s requirements. Farm Tech Consultancy helps communities in growing their own safe and fresh vegetables in the nearest available locations. We put forward the plan of sustainability in which we help the investors to try and maximize sustainable farming. We are also adopting hydroponics in which we use recycled water to facilitate water conservation. Farm Tech assist clients in feasibility studies,
Farm Tech Consultancy aims to provide knowledge on urban & rural agriculture & mitigate risks in sustainable farming, hydroponics green houses & aquaponics
You have almost two decades of industry experience, what is your success mantra?
determination to achieve the set goals have been my success mantra. Dedication and determination become part of the solution and if I set my heart on some thing and want to achieve it, I stand firmly by my decisions.
In what ways is sustainability reflected in the operations that are carried out by Farm Tech Consultancy?
Due to the scarcity of resources in the Middle East like expensive labor, and lack of water, sustainability is our priority. Farm Tech is a specialist in Hydroponics, Aquaponics, and plant factory projects and is backed by a decade of experience in handling projects in the toughest conditions. We can design greenhouses for the cultivation of crops in soil and soilless conditions based on the client’s requirements. Farm Tech Consultancy helps communities in growing their own safe and fresh vegetables in the nearest available locations. We put forward the plan of sustainability in which we help the investors to try and maximize sustainable farming. We are also adopting hydroponics in which we use recycled water to facilitate water conservation. Farm Tech assist clients in feasibility studies,
validates the business strategies, and helps them manage their operational challenges. We also promote safe food by helping investors in getting safety standard certifications. As our commitment towards the new gen, we are promoting the concept of hydroponics, the future of farming in educational institutes.
What are some of the future market trends and development that you see evolving in agriculture and sustainable farming?
We have been seeing frequent droughts and climate change in recent times. We cannot change the weather to suit our needs but can leverage technology to make the best of available conditions and resources. Agriculture production firms are expected to ensure a continuous supply of produce to the market even during the toughest of times. PreCovid, companies, and countries assumed sustainable farming to be a global market but that is rapidly changing. Post Covid, hydroponics or hightech farming technologies have gained a lot of importance since most countries are trying to adopt sustainable farming to become food sufficient and self-sufficient. The effect of the pandemic such as restrictions on shipment and export import taught us the need to be self sufficient in agriculture because we need to feed our people. Agriculture service consultancy providers are expected to think ahead of the market trends in identifying futuristic farming practices to deliver the highest quality products to consumers.
What advice do you have for future leaders and budding entrepreneurs in agriculture?
We see a lot of opportunities, new emerging projects, and entrepreneurs in agriculture in India, and within a short term period, we will be the face of agriculture. How ever, we don’t see agriculture graduates coming up with startups and agriculture production and this needs to change. Agriculture graduates can utilize and maximize technology and the knowledge acquired through education so they should come forward to set up more startups and be industry leaders. The methods of Farming may change, but the future of farming is never ending.
Muralee Manohar & Sanitha Manohar, Managing Partner, Farm Tech Consultancy
Milind Thekedar is the MD of JBS ENTERPRISES. He graduated in Electrical Engineering from Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology in 1980 and began his career as a Junior Engineer at MSEB. In 1987, he started JBS ENTERPRISES and relocated the head office to Thane in 1993.
•Favorite hobbies-Travelling, Driving
•Favorite cuisine-Chinese, Keralite
What are some of the future market trends and development that you see evolving in agriculture and sustainable farming?
We have been seeing frequent droughts and climate change in recent times. We cannot change the weather to suit our needs but can leverage technology to make the best of available conditions and resources. Agriculture production firms are expected to ensure a continuous supply of produce to the market even during the toughest of times. PreCovid, companies, and countries assumed sustainable farming to be a global market but that is rapidly changing. Post Covid, hydroponics or hightech farming technologies have gained a lot of importance since most countries are trying to adopt sustainable farming to become food sufficient and self-sufficient. The effect of the pandemic such as restrictions on shipment and export import taught us the need to be self sufficient in agriculture because we need to feed our people. Agriculture service consultancy providers are expected to think ahead of the market trends in identifying futuristic farming practices to deliver the highest quality products to consumers.
What advice do you have for future leaders and budding entrepreneurs in agriculture?
We see a lot of opportunities, new emerging projects, and entrepreneurs in agriculture in India, and within a short term period, we will be the face of agriculture. How ever, we don’t see agriculture graduates coming up with startups and agriculture production and this needs to change. Agriculture graduates can utilize and maximize technology and the knowledge acquired through education so they should come forward to set up more startups and be industry leaders. The methods of Farming may change, but the future of farming is never ending.
Muralee Manohar & Sanitha Manohar, Managing Partner, Farm Tech Consultancy
Milind Thekedar is the MD of JBS ENTERPRISES. He graduated in Electrical Engineering from Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology in 1980 and began his career as a Junior Engineer at MSEB. In 1987, he started JBS ENTERPRISES and relocated the head office to Thane in 1993.
•Favorite hobbies-Travelling, Driving
•Favorite cuisine-Chinese, Keralite