Nature One Fresh Produce: Bridging The Broken Value Chains In Exporting Fresh Farm Produce
Prakash Jain & Karan Bhadra
Partners
Bridging the broken value chains in export, here comes Nature One Farm Produce (NOFP) as a brand full of goodness exporting the best fruits and vegetables worldwide. Table Grapes being our most sought product across the world.
Under the leadership of Prakash Jain and Karan Bhadra, Nature One Fresh Produce (NOFP) delivers quality, transparency and trust in the Indian Produce. Below is an excerpt from CEO Insights' interview with the leaders.
Give a gist of your background. How has been the journey so far?
Prakash: It has been a rewarding long journey of 25 years. We have experienced a fair share of ups and downs in the way the business has evolved over the years. Having my grounds in the logistics industry, I observed that maintaining cold chain and post-harvest management was a big challenge along with availability of Refeer Containers in the export of Table Grapes from India. My journey, however, has been very enriching and has evolved YoY. We slowly but steadily have managed to be at par with the expectations on food Safety, quality and delivery of various International Super markets and whole sale markets.
At this point, I can proudly say that Table grape is one of the most organized trade out of India in the F&B Category. This is possible with various efforts and initiatives of our farmers and the Government Agencies allied with Agriculture Promotion, Research and Export Trade over the years.Today, we can proudly say that we are one of the leading exporters with a global presence. We have established ourselves as a very strong leader in the export business of Table Grapes from India.
Highlight your professional growth story. How do you encourage other functional leaders to take part in the journey?
Karan: First of all, I would like to thank Jain for giving me this opportunity to enter the business as a partner. Despite having my background in BE (electronics) and MBA (Finance & Marketing), I carry over eight years of agripreneurial experience. I was extremely intrigued by the value of NOFP and joined the firm in 2013. He is also now the 8th Indian and 12th Asian BRCGS Professional and 1st Amongst the Indian F&B Exporters.
My self-belief or mantra of leadership is, “Leadership cannot be imposed but has to be achieved”. This will get you the desired position, better acceptance, and respect in the ecosystem organically. To achieve this, I would encourage functional leaders to take initiative, follow their gut and optimize their decision-making process. And we as the Management will back their decisions irrespective of the outcomes to give them confidence and help them grow and contribute.
What’s the success mantra that has been helping you to arrive at post-positive outcomes?
Prakash: I feel that quality is of paramount importance. When I mean quality, I also emphasize very good eating quality; not just the looks of the product. Consistently delivering a right quality product as per the customer specs, at the right time with right packaging are a few parameters to be taken care of to be successful in the F&B exporting business. This does not just bring success to entrepreneurs like me but the entire ecosystem by increasing the trust in Indian produce. Quality, Quality and Quality are the three commandments for successful export business.
How has been the evolution of NOFP?
Karan: Over the past few years, the global economic scenarios have been very unstable and highly unpredictable which led to major cost disruptions across various verticals of the export businesses.
Karan: First of all, I would like to thank Jain for giving me this opportunity to enter the business as a partner. Despite having my background in BE (electronics) and MBA (Finance & Marketing), I carry over eight years of agripreneurial experience. I was extremely intrigued by the value of NOFP and joined the firm in 2013. He is also now the 8th Indian and 12th Asian BRCGS Professional and 1st Amongst the Indian F&B Exporters.
Company and Brand NOFP stands for highquality standards, Transparency and Business Ethics. It is one big family with huge farmer base, Experienced professionals and happy global customers. It differentiates itself by complying and certifying with applicable International Standards
My self-belief or mantra of leadership is, “Leadership cannot be imposed but has to be achieved”. This will get you the desired position, better acceptance, and respect in the ecosystem organically. To achieve this, I would encourage functional leaders to take initiative, follow their gut and optimize their decision-making process. And we as the Management will back their decisions irrespective of the outcomes to give them confidence and help them grow and contribute.
What’s the success mantra that has been helping you to arrive at post-positive outcomes?
Prakash: I feel that quality is of paramount importance. When I mean quality, I also emphasize very good eating quality; not just the looks of the product. Consistently delivering a right quality product as per the customer specs, at the right time with right packaging are a few parameters to be taken care of to be successful in the F&B exporting business. This does not just bring success to entrepreneurs like me but the entire ecosystem by increasing the trust in Indian produce. Quality, Quality and Quality are the three commandments for successful export business.
How has been the evolution of NOFP?
Karan: Over the past few years, the global economic scenarios have been very unstable and highly unpredictable which led to major cost disruptions across various verticals of the export businesses.
NOFP has evolved itself as a lean organization with a sustainable cost of operations and optimized supply chain to serve a widely diversified portfolio of customers across the globe. We also have managed to create our infra and HR base in major horticulture belts of Maharashtra which helps us to be ahead of the competition in terms of our offerings and cold chain management.
What are the latest marketing strategies and technological innovations you are planning to implement across the operation?
Prakash & Karan: Two Main Pillars of F&B Business are Quality and Food Safety. NOFP principally believes in the Kaizen philosophy. We are striving to boost customer confidence YoY by demonstrating strong and efficient food-safety culture and protocols. This can only be achieved by using the right mix of technology and qualified human resources. On the Table Grapes Export, the NOFP brand has really penetrated deeper into the global markets and has made spectacular goodwill. NOFP is in the phase to launch new products in our F&B Export Basket and achieve similar or better results. By doing this NOFP has not only for itself but also created a strong reputation as a leading INDIAN F&B Brand across global markets.
Advice for the budding professionals in the F&B domain.
Prakash: Understand the business from the grassroots level, spend time in the field, connect with the growers emotionally as well, and make sure to have a good two-way relationship with growers. Don't rush on volume just because there is an order until you get that experience and the hang of the product. (don’t try to be an opportunist because greed can destroy your brand and the image of Indian produce). Ensure the produce which you is being packed and delivered is of highest quality and standards of food safety. The last one is to have a well-maintained cold chain.
Karan: I agree that it is important to start from and stay close to the grass-roots. Product knowledge and product life dynamics vary widely across the categories of produces and being aware of them is of utmost importance to grow, harvest, market and ship successfully. F&B products are like a ticking time bomb and you have to be proactive in your approach. To ensure that, I suggest having a small managerial hierarchy to ensure the quickest possible decision-making.
Prakash Jain, Partner, Nature One Fresh Produce
A result-driven leader and a visionary, Prakash believes in building a strong relationship with growers and focusing on quality, time, and packing to make a mark in the export business.
Karan Bhadra, Partner, Nature One Fresh Produce
Karan, a food enthusiast, loves networking and strongly believes in values of integrity and team spirit.
What are the latest marketing strategies and technological innovations you are planning to implement across the operation?
Prakash & Karan: Two Main Pillars of F&B Business are Quality and Food Safety. NOFP principally believes in the Kaizen philosophy. We are striving to boost customer confidence YoY by demonstrating strong and efficient food-safety culture and protocols. This can only be achieved by using the right mix of technology and qualified human resources. On the Table Grapes Export, the NOFP brand has really penetrated deeper into the global markets and has made spectacular goodwill. NOFP is in the phase to launch new products in our F&B Export Basket and achieve similar or better results. By doing this NOFP has not only for itself but also created a strong reputation as a leading INDIAN F&B Brand across global markets.
Advice for the budding professionals in the F&B domain.
Prakash: Understand the business from the grassroots level, spend time in the field, connect with the growers emotionally as well, and make sure to have a good two-way relationship with growers. Don't rush on volume just because there is an order until you get that experience and the hang of the product. (don’t try to be an opportunist because greed can destroy your brand and the image of Indian produce). Ensure the produce which you is being packed and delivered is of highest quality and standards of food safety. The last one is to have a well-maintained cold chain.
Karan: I agree that it is important to start from and stay close to the grass-roots. Product knowledge and product life dynamics vary widely across the categories of produces and being aware of them is of utmost importance to grow, harvest, market and ship successfully. F&B products are like a ticking time bomb and you have to be proactive in your approach. To ensure that, I suggest having a small managerial hierarchy to ensure the quickest possible decision-making.
Prakash Jain, Partner, Nature One Fresh Produce
A result-driven leader and a visionary, Prakash believes in building a strong relationship with growers and focusing on quality, time, and packing to make a mark in the export business.
Karan Bhadra, Partner, Nature One Fresh Produce
Karan, a food enthusiast, loves networking and strongly believes in values of integrity and team spirit.