CHENNAI: After quitting his IT job in 2016, Sriram Prasad G took his technology knowledge to new avenues by setting up Keerai Kadai Ventures, a food-processing unit that focuses on the procurement of fresh greens and offers many value-added products. While the company has seen its share of success in the past five years, on April 13, the agritech-based venture ascended to a new level with the launch of its Augmented Reality App — one that is all set to give you every piece on information on the keerai at hand with a simple scan.
“When scanned from the website, the AR app provides detailed information about a particular green along with its health benefits,” said Sriram. The next time you are shopping alone in the healthy section of the supermarket or chance upon a new shrub next to the section of palak in your backyard, you’ll be able to tell exactly what it is and how good it is for you. They have 100+ greens/products listed on the ‘Scan Me’ section of the website. The scan AR image option in the app will allow one to scan and reveal benefits/scientific details of the products/greens. So, the app and website must be open on two different devices for this to work.
This new experience — a digital herbarium — is entirely committed to reinstituting the knowledge of the role of greens in a healthy diet, noted Sriram. The ‘AR Magic’ app has a database of information on 120 keerai varieties. The goal is to add over 500 greens to the repository. “We want to re-introduce the forgotten traditional food of high nutritional value to our customers by procuring the requisites directly from farmers. We are looking forward to launching 100+ value-added products very soon and delivering green-based nutrition at your doorstep, akin to newspaper and milk,” he shared.
The website offers a whole range of value-added products as well. Keerai Kadai has launched Greeny Crunch cookies in six unique flavours — Vallarai Choco Chip, Aavarampoo Choco Chip, Ashwagandha Almond, Guava Coconut, Insulin Spinach, and Tulsi. Its Greeny Dip range of soups gets six new flavours too — Avaarampoo, Adathoda, Punarnava, Amla, Guava Leaf, and Plantain Leaf.
“We directly receive raw materials from the farmers. This not only reduces their cost of logistic but increases their income levels rapidly. A farmer can easily make Rs 40,000 per acre as we depend on the cash-based system rather than credit,” he explained.
With the idea of using 100 per cent natural products, Keerai Kadai provides nutritious edibles with minimal preparatory time (around one minute). It is a recognised venture of MSME, Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), and Madurai Agribusiness Incubation Forum (MABIF).