Essay On Sustainable Business

The concept of  sustainability in business basically focuses on analysing how the methods and chosen processes that are implemented in the organisation can ensure long-term benefit for the business as well as for the community at large (Holmberg and Sandbrook, 2019). The idea of sustainability in business is to build a holistic business approach which is open to innovation and improvements and ensures to use the available resources to its full potential in developing a business model that is not harmful for the environment and the society at large. Sustainable business practices integrate economic, social and environmental concerns in their business operations. In this discussion the chosen sector of the industry that would be further discussed is the agriculture industry or farming. The global agriculture market is approximately expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.1% and account to $12,541.15 billion in 2022 (globenewswire.com, 2022) and it is identified as the world’s largest industry employing more than one billion people. Therefore with such large scale economic dominance it is extremely important for this industry to ensure a holistic business approach that can benefit the organisation and the economy. However it has been noted that most traditional techniques that have been implemented in the agriculture business have been extremely harsh on the natural ecosystem and have degraded the quality of the soil and the overall natural habitat (Hans and Rao, 2018.). Therefore in order to control such widespread devastation and environmental degradation most organisations in this sector are now switching to advanced and better technologies in farming which are quite a contrast to the traditional one. Hence in this report the focus would be discuss one such modern farming technique that has gained a lot of significance in the recent times that is hydroponics farming, the companies that are implementing the same and what growth statistics in has brought in the industry.

 

Agriculture has no doubt played and extremely important role in the overall advancement of the human society. It has been since approximately 10000 BCE and has helped in enriching life and economy. However it is also important to understand the fact that as the demand for agricultural products has simultaneously increased, the farmers have only focused on retaining maximum yield even at the cost of sustainability (Bastan et al. 2017). This is exactly the reason why conventional farming or traditional farming methods have cost a heavy impact on the overall environment. These traditional farming techniques fail to maintain the necessary integrity of agricultural landscapes. Moreover in this ever increasing demand, the farmers use harsh pesticides and fertilisers in soils that tend to leave extremely harmful chemicals in the soil and pollute the environment (Therond et al. 2017).  On the other hand the modern methods that are now used in farming are used today such as aeroponics and hydroponics along with monoculture tend to minimise the harmful impact on the natural resources and use technology and innovation in the process to retain sustainability. These modern farming techniques have not just been helpful in reducing pollution and degradation of the natural environment but helps in higher rate of production in comparison to other traditional methods.

 

Hydroponics is one such modern farming technique which enables to cultivate crops without the use of soil. Here the crops are planted in inert growing media and then it is supplied with extremely nutrient-rich solutions, along with water and oxygen (Singh et al. 2019). This enables the crops to grow at a faster speed, produce high quality and stronger yields. It is also identified as subset of hydro culture and has been used since 10th century. However by 16th century it gained significant market exposure. Today global agricultural companies are constantly focusing on choosing hydroponics as their method of farming as it is sustainable in terms that it requires no soil, less space, helps to conserve water along with producing greater amount of yields and also demands less labour in the process of farming.

 

One of the leading agriculture brands which have successfully set up largest hydroponic farm in India is Nutrifresh. Nutrifresh has its 10 acres of land in front of Purandar fort where the company grows its exotic fruits and vegetables with no use of pesticides or residue and no soil. All these farming is done with water and coco pear. Nutrifresh utilises nutrient-rich water which is RO purified to help the harvest grow and then gets it delivered door-to-door within 24 hours of the harvest time (www.nutrifresh.com, 2022). It is India’s largest hydroponic project which gets the harvest shipped to Mumbai and Pune. This sustainable business model chosen by the organisation has not only helped the business to maximise profit but has also been socially engaging as this hydroponics farm which is known to grow residue-free crop has given employment to over 5000 urban  farmers to adopt this modern farming technology. Nutrifresh Farm has recently in the year 2022 has raised $5million as a pre-series seed funding and the start up is also planning to utilise its fresh capital in order to scale up its business operations (Chatterjee, Debnath and Pal, 2020). Therefore Nutrifresh has been quite successful in integrating the Triple Bottom Line Approach in its business which focuses on incorporating the 3Ps: People, Planet and Profit

 

The next organisation that has also set remarkable standards in switching to sustainable farming practices is Urban Kisaan. The organisation started back in 2017, where the organisation aimed to create sustainable future by ensuring absolute transparency in supply-chain, confirming low-carbon footprint. This has enabled the firm reduce its water consumption by 95% where as the growth has been 30 times better (urbankisaan.com, 2022) in compared to traditional farming techniques. The aim with which Urban Kissan has started its journey is to feed the world but in a sustainable manner. The focus is on integrating agri-entrepreneurship in the business model to benefit both the people and the planet.   Apart from this Urban Kissan also aims to change the concept that farming or growing vegetation is only when one has acres of land. In the concrete jungle of urban cities like Hyderabad Urban Kissan has focused on producing organically harvested vegetables using hydroponic farming. Today the organisation has over 30 farms (urbankisaan.com, 2022) and all of these have turned out quite profitable. The organisation is growing at 110% average month on month sales.

 

Another agriculture based organisation that has been focusing on integrating the system of hydroponic farming in its business model is Junga FreshnGreen. Junga which is a beautiful town in Himachal Pradesh is rapidly spreading its presence in the Indian hydroponic market to and is aiming to become one of the top hydroponic start-ups in India. Junga FreshnGreen has been able to set up its own state-of-art facility which is spread over 9.3 hectares in Junga. This organisation has also focused on popularising soil-less cultivation and is a joint venture with a Sutch AgTech company and Westlandse Project Combinatie BV (WPC)  (infracoasia.com, 2022) as one of the partners. All these companies which have adapted to this sustainable methods of farming has enabled the business to produce more and enjoy maximum returns with minimum investment along with help the society to choose natural and healthy measures of farming.

 

Future Farm is also a leading Climate Control and Hydroponic Solution provider that has successfully addressed the issue of food insecurity issues in India. It is one of the leading hydroponics and automation start-up which has been successful in providing end-to-end solutions. Future Farm has been successful in growing various licensed industrial humps to vine crops and berries and has launched over 60 business ventures (futurefarm.io, 2022) which include individuals as well as corporations across India. The organisation is also highly committed to provide constant support to famers to help them individually achieve their business goals. It is this way that the organisation has been successful in meeting the sustainability goals and integrating the same in their operation. This has not only helped the business to achieve standards of sustainability but also help the business produce better yield and help the local farmers in the process (Goddek et al. 2019). The primary sustainability goals that Future Farm has focused on is ethical sourcing of raw materials and partnering with world’s best suppliers, along with focusing on the packaging to reduce the carbon footprint of the business, addressing the issues of climate change by partnering with Carbon Cloud

 

Those business organisations which are constantly focusing on incorporating hydroponics farming in business are most entrepreneurial start-ups and this clearly states that in order to bring a positive change it is extremely necessary to implement new technology. Hydroponics farming has been able to change the whole concept of how agricultural farms operate and have been successful in integrating the method of farming with certain SDGs which have been put forward by UN (Cifuentes‐Torres et al. 2021). These SDGs or sustainable development goals include: SDG6- CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION, SDG9- INDUSTRY, INNOVATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE, SDG11- SUSTAINABLE CITIES AND COMMUNITIES, SDG 13- CLIMATE ACTION, SDG17- PARTNERSHIP FOR THE GOALS (Biermann, Kanie and Kim, 2017). These are the goals that these modern techniques of farming are meeting and are helping the overall agro industry to develop sustainable business practices. Confirming to these sustainability goals helps the business choose a responsible approach in its functioning where the focus is on understanding. Implementing the Stakeholders Theory by Freeman it is extremely necessary for businesses across every industry sector that it is never enough for the business to just meet the financial or economic goals rather the business should look towards the betterment of its internal as well as external customers. This basically means that the business should consider its organisation goals along with meeting its social responsibilities and environmental concerns. In this way businesses tend to create a ripple-down effect in the society (Jones 2016). This is exactly how the global agricultural industry should also function, where adapting a responsible business approach and prioritising on the needs of all its stakeholders in the business will automatically help the organisation adapt sustainable practices.

 

While preparing this portfolio, personally I have understood the fact that though agriculture contributes to such a large revenue segment in the global economy, yet if the business standards do not necessary follow these sustainability measures and adapt to these modern farming practices then it would become impossible for the business to function in the long run. The concept of sustainability in business is definitely not limited to how the business is just focusing on the environmental concern rather it helps the business take a holistic approach (Nalwade and Mote, 2017) where the focus in on understanding how the organisation is integrating economic, environmental and social goals altogether and creating a business model that is beneficial for all. In this process of understand how traditional farming concepts have taken a toll on the environment I have also understood why it is important for businesses to focus on integrating new technology and innovation. Moreover the chosen organisations that have been discussed here are mostly start-ups or entrepreneurial venture which in itself speaks how traditional farming methods are still been practiced by well established agricultural firms which is definitely a matter of concern. Altogether this learning has helped the students understand how it is necessary for the businesses to choose a holistic business model which is open as well as inclusive and takes into account the 3 identified Ps that is People, Planet and Profit 

 

Therefore through this analysis, it is quite evident why traditional farming is losing its significance and the modern techniques of farming is gaining much acceptance. In this aspect it is important for the internal as well as the external stakeholders of the business to come together. Understanding the concept of Triple Bottom Line Approach and prioritising on inclusive organisational practices are extremely essential. Choosing these modern farming techniques like hydroponics and implementing the same will not only benefit the environment but the people as well as the organisation. This is the reason why most agri-based start-ups are now concentrating on these technologies while reducing their dependence on non-renewal resources. Hence to popularise these methods it is essential that the farmers and the business entrepreneurs get the necessary support in terms of funding as well as knowledge from the government authorities and can enable to expand their business in a sustainable manner.

 

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