After a failed first crop, a 57-year-old grew soil-free strawberries and sold ₹44 lakh
Ketan Sodha, a Mumbai commerce graduate with no farming background, now grows strawberries year-round in Mahabaleshwar.
- Plants: 19,500 in cocopeat
- Price: ₹400–600/kg
- Next: 5-acre farm, 200,000+ plants
From disaster to polyhouse
Ketan Sodha, 57, a BCom graduate from Mumbai, started growing strawberries in 2016 with 5,000 plants and called his first year 'a disaster'. He expanded to 10,000 plants in 2017 and by 2020–21 farmed almost 40 acres across three sites.
After touring farms in Italy, Spain, Egypt and Turkey, he built a soilless polyhouse on 2 acres with 19,500 plants in cocopeat, automated fertigation, misting, rainwater harvesting and ozone-treated water.
The results
His venture, Berry Fresh Agrotech, reports about 8,000 kg of fruit and ₹44 lakh in sales, at ₹400–600 a kg, about 60% direct to consumers. He is now in talks with investors for a 5-acre farm with at least 200,000 plants.
