Microgreen Franchises: Turning Your Gardening Skills into a Full-Fledged Business

To understand the hugeness of India’s agriculture sector, it is important to take into consideration the fact that it employed 50% of the Indian workforce in the year 2018. Despite this glooming fact, it is saddening to know that the agriculture sector contributed only 17-18% to the country’s GDP in the same year. The agricultural and farming activities in India hold a long history that runs throughout the evolution of country and the globalization has often been successful in affecting it in different ways. The growing urbanization has restricted farming to the villages and other rural areas while the fresh and organic food grains and vegetables have become a distant dream for the Indian millennials.

While the buzz around health and fitness makes consumers strive for their healthier alternatives of food, people are welcoming every other fitness trend that surfaces around them. One such trend that has recently risen in the fitness sector is the concept of microgreens. With the trend gradually surfacing the world, the new organic farming activity has been put in place for the urban population that aspires to be healthier.  In the course of the distribution of microgreens to the masses, the concept of franchising is encouraging people who are engaged in farming activities (a whopping 50% of the employed population and other amateur farmers) to turn their gardening skills into a big business as the demand for microgreens is skyrocketing.

Microgreen Franchise: A Less Explored Road to Success

Just like sprouts, microgreens are young edible plants that are older than a sprout but younger than a full-grown plant and have high nutritional value. Unlike sprouts that are kept in the water to germinate, microgreens are harvested in the soil after the first true leaves have developed. Generally, they are the small variety of its mature plant. Some of the most demanded microgreens are beetroot, radish, mustard, cabbage, and many others. The reason why microgreens are in high demand is the rich nutritional content in them. As per the reports, microgreens have almost 4 to 40 times more nutritional value than what their mature counterparts have.

One of the best things in microgreen business that attracts entrepreneurs is that they can be grown almost anywhere, even during winters. It is both practical and profitable to grow them indoors as they require so little space. The space-efficiency of microgreens has created a steady demand among the farmers and entrepreneurs who are concerned with farming and this is why it is one of the best new crops for urban farmers.  Not only startups are interested in pursuing a full-fledged business in microgreen cultivation, but the established business groups like Nature’s Basket are interested in investing their money into microgreens. Many brands have started the business and are now taking the franchise route for further expansion.

Talking about the business opportunities in India for farmers who are involved in microgreen cultivation, India serves as a profitable destination to start with the entrepreneurial journey as it has emerged into a good market for microgreens. The short lifespan of microgreens (shorter than 1-2 weeks) aids the farmers to continue the cultivation of more microgreens, unlike their adult counterparts. Also, you can easily grow them in small backyards or even terraces as they need only some direct sunlight and timely irrigation. All of this together makes it a booming business idea as microgreens have good market value. Many hotels and restaurants also demand microgreens due to the consumers demanding healthy food more, and this ultimately gives a boost to the microgreens market.

Microgreen Franchise Requirements in India

As already mentioned before, the concept of franchising along with the business idea of cultivating microgreens gives wings to the entrepreneurial dreams of most of the farmers who are struggling with lower crop yield and less income. A lot of new brands providing microgreens are emerging in the market and few of them are taking franchising route in India. A renowned brand in microgreens business offers franchise opportunities in an investment of around Rs 5-7 lakhs along with providing all the essential equipment such as fluorescent light fixture, paper towels, spray bottles, potting soil, and seeds. The microgreen business is as lucrative as for franchisees as it is for the consumers.