Journey to Empower Farmers: After leaving Microsoft, he developed a thriving network of 40 lakh farmers and became a champion of farmers

Journey to Empower Farmers: Ruchit G. Garg made the brave decision to change his professional path and became the founder and CEO of Harvesting Farmers Network (HFN) after spending more than ten years working for prestigious US firms, such as Microsoft. After working for six years at Microsoft and eleven years in the computer sector, Ruchit left his lucrative job in 2011 to pursue his love of Indian agriculture. Inspired by his modest upbringing and the struggles rural people faced, he set out to transform smallholder farming into a viable and sustainable industry.

A Change-Oriented Vision

Significant contributions to the development of innovative technologies such as Windows Phone, Microsoft OS, XBOX, and the first Hindi-language commercial text-to-speech system in India were made by Ruchit. Even with his success in the IT industry, he was driven to make a significant impact on agriculture. Ruchit says, “I come from a lower-middle-class background, and I have seen people struggling to meet their day-to-day needs,” in reflection on his choice. My heart has always belonged to our country’s farmers, since my grandpa was a farmer. I started my own business, HFN, since I wanted to help them, so I decided to do my bit in agriculture.

Linking Farmers with Prospects

HFN establishes direct connections with farmers via digital and physical means, offering professional guidance, cost-effective inputs, and more favorable output prices. “HFN is involved in everything a farmer needs, from seed to harvest,” says Ruchit. “Koi kisan piche na choote” translates to “Leave No Farmer Behind.”

Overcoming Obstacles and Reaching Achievement

Ruchit persevered despite early difficulties, such as false beliefs about his profession, and it paid off. At first, many misinterpreted his goal, believing he had failed in the United States and had come back to India to sell vegetables. He recalls that people used to tell me that I was merely a vegetable seller and that I was booted out of the United States. However, my commitment remained unwavering, and I set to work creating HFN.

As of right now, HFN has around 40 lakh farmers in its network, including Kisan Sarathis, from all across the nation. HFN makes sure farmers obtain fair pricing by setting up processing facilities and doing away with intermediaries, greatly boosting their revenue. According to Ruchit, choosing a supply chain in agriculture results in lower income. In order to provide farmers with multiple times what they used to earn, we are working to establish processing units at our HFN Kisan Centers. We refer to it as “the farmers’ own brand,” or HFN.

Developing a Sustainable Future and Strengthening Farmers

The efforts of HFN have been very successful. The elimination of middlemen has caused farmer earnings in certain areas to quadruple. As an example, Ruchit says, “Farmers in the Nilgiri mountains received avocados for Rs 5, whereas in Bangalore, they would have received Rs 200.” Farmers may get higher pricing with this kind of direct market access.

In order to help farmers embrace contemporary farming practices and increase their yields, HFN seeks to provide them with high-quality, reasonably priced agricultural supplies as well as professional advice. Our mission is to enable every smallholder farmer to engage in profitable and sustainable farming. Along with aiding FPOs with packaging, labeling, and other capacity-building initiatives, we are also focusing on FMCG,” says Ruchit.

Guidance for the Upcoming Generation

Ruchit gives young business owners advice on how to be patient and enthusiastic about what they do. He advises, “Focus on real problems to find impactful solutions.” His path is proof of the value of perseverance and the significant influence one person can have on a large number of others.