Varaha, a tech-enabled platform for generating carbon credits via nature-based solutions, announced today that it has raised USD 4 million in Seed funding. The round was led by Orios Venture Partners, alongside participation from Omnivore, RTP Global, Better Capital, and other angel investors, including Kunal Shah.
Based out of Gurugram and Bengaluru, Varaha was founded in 2022 by Madhur Jain, Ankita Garg, and Vishal Kuchanur. Globally, over 500 million smallholder farmers are affected by climate change. Currently, there is no financial incentive for smallholder farmers to adopt agricultural practices that reduce GHG emissions and improve carbon sequestration. Varaha incentivizes smallholder farmers to follow regenerative agriculture practices by creating high-quality carbon credits that augment their income while reducing operating costs.
The founding team has deep knowledge about the sector and decades of relevant industry experience. Madhur, an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, previously led digital business for the Indian arm of a global agtech firm, and was the Country Director for India at Precision Agriculture for Development. Ankita, also an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, holds an MS in Biotechnology from Pennsylvania State University and previously worked for Bayer Crop Science. As for Vishal, he previously worked in engineering leadership roles with Flipkart, Big Basket, CropIn, and Goldman Sachs.
Commenting on the fundraise, Madhur Jain, Co-Founder, and CEO of Varaha, said, “Varaha’s tech platform creates fully-traceable, high integrity, carbon offsets from nature-based solutions. Selling such offsets will catalyze climate-positive activities, augment the income of smallholder farmers and rural communities, and increase biodiversity. We are excited to partner with Orios, Omnivore, and RTP Global in this journey as we rapidly scale across smallholder geographies."
Anup Jain, Managing Partner, Orios Venture Partners said, “With the undeniable impact of climate change, purchasing carbon credits to offset emissions will soon become necessary for all commercial entities. We are excited to support and invest in Varaha as they address this large market of identifying, authenticating, and making the credits available for purchase in domestic or global markets by working with India's farmers.”
Mark Kahn, Managing Partner at Omnivore, said, “We are always eager to support innovations that improve farmer incomes while building resilience with climate-conscious practices. Varaha delivers on all counts, and we are delighted to support their vision.”
Varaha’s platform facilitates smallholder farmer enrolment, GHG quantification, verification of carbon credits, and sale to buyers looking for high-integrity credits. Building upon its scientific and technological prowess, Varaha has extended its nature-based climate innovations across soil and water management, methane emissions reduction, agroforestry, and mangrove conservation. Using this funding, Varaha plans to focus on talent acquisition and expand its operations across South Asia.
