Bayer and Cargill – Bayer, a worldwide organisation with key expertise in the life science disciplines of agriculture and healthcare, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Cargill, a global food corporation that establishes linkages throughout the global food chain to help the world thrive.
This strategic alliance intends to transform the agricultural landscape by providing farmers with innovative solutions and ensuring optimal market realisation for their produce. This strategic partnership is dedicated to improving market access for smallholder farmers by drawing on the capabilities of innovative platforms such as Cargill’s ‘Digital Saathi’ – a mobile-first, AI-driven service platform tailored to hyper-localized needs – and Bayer’s Better Life Farming Centres, which support over 500,000 smallholder farmers.
Bayer and Cargill are committed to providing farmers with digital solutions such as discussion forums and detailed information on market prices, weather forecasts, and pre- to post-harvest insights. Bayer’s eCommerce strategy entails expanding customised solutions via the Digital Saathi app, beginning with maize farming in Karnataka and then spreading to other crops and areas.
The goal of partnering with Food Value Chain Partners is to revolutionise and have a long-term impact on the agricultural sector. This collaboration also gives farmers access to DEKALB®, Bayer’s premier maize portfolio, on the Digital Saathi Platform, increasing their agricultural capacities.
Furthermore, Cargill’s Digital Saathi platform provides simple Crop Input e-commerce and Crop Sell Offer capabilities, ensuring farmers have increased access to high-quality crop inputs and promoting market linkages between farmers and aggregators via a digitally enabled marketplace. This integrated strategy attempts to improve farmers’ decision-making abilities, streamline agricultural operations, and create efficient and seamless interactions throughout the agricultural ecosystem.
Bayer and Cargill
Digital Saathi has already successfully worked with over 50,000 registered small farmers and plans to reach 3 million farmers across eight states, including Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, by 2027. The introduction of Digital Saathi is a key step towards Cargill’s global goal of delivering sustainable agricultural practises training and enhancing market access to 10 million farmers by 2030.
“As Cargill, we are dedicated to creating innovative digital solutions, and we are thrilled to collaborate with Bayer to foster a productive and profitable ecosystem for farmers across India,” said Simon George, Cargill’s president in India. This collaboration is a critical step forward in our road towards sustainable and productive agriculture. We remain consistent in our mission to support farmers worldwide and develop a resilient and inclusive food system by harnessing our combined resources, experience, and global networks.”
Raman Saxena, founder of Digital Saathi, commented on the collaboration, saying, “We initiated the introduction of farm advisory subscription and farm management services (soil testing) on our platform earlier this year, aiming to provide farmers with a comprehensive solution for their agricultural requirements.” Through this collaboration, we hope to provide farmers with access to a wide selection of quality inputs and implements via the Agri Input Market Place, which will boost their yields while also providing a comprehensive solution for maximising farmers’ revenue.”
Digital Saathi, which is available in numerous languages, including English, Kannada, and Hindi, serves farmers in various districts of Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, supporting better decision-making processes. Bayer and Cargill are collaborating to reach 3 million farmers in India over the next five years. The collaboration will begin in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh and then expand to other states.
