The Hindu Business Line : MCX to tie up with Mayhco for seed distribution in Jalgaon

Agri-Biz & Commodities - Alliances & Joint Ventures
Logistics - Supply Chain Management
MCX to tie up with Mayhco for seed distribution in Jalgaon

Venture with India Post generates earnings

Exchange moves
MCX decides to increase profit share for branch post master to 3%
Has appointed firm to study and source weather insurance in Jalgaon.

Suresh P. Iyengar

Mumbai, Dec. 8 The farmers of Jalgaon in Maharashtra go to the post office not only to buy postcards and stamps, but also to place orders for seeds, fertilisers and pesticides, thanks to an MCX initiative that has managed to link farmers with the seed companies through five post offices covering 15-20 villages in Jalgaon.

Typically, a farmer places an order with the post office for the quantity of seeds required and pays 10 per cent upfront. The post office in turn arranges for the requested seeds through MCX from the seed company. Farmer pays the remaining cost after receiving the seed packets which are dispatched through the postal department.

In June, MCX arranged for seeds worth Rs 1.29 lakh and fertilisers and pesticides worth Rs 1.08 lakh through its tie-up with Shriram Fertilizers and Chemicals Ltd.

Earnings

After paying for the total expenses, the post masters of the five servicing branches earned about Rs 23,000, India Post received Rs 7,000, and MCX got Rs 12,000.

“Though it is not a money-making exercise for us, everybody in the chain has benefited. Egged by the response, the remaining 11 post offices covering 41 villages in Jalgaon have shown keen interest,” said Ms Saritha Bahl, Vice-President, MCX.

The exchange has decided to increase the share of profit for branch post master from one per cent to three per cent starting the next crop season.

0“The sale of pesticides has not picked up as expected due to lack of storage facility. We are in the process of setting this right with more agri-based companies joining hands with us,” Ms Bahl said.

MCX is in the final stage of signing a similar agreement with Mayhco, a seed company partly owned by Monsanto and Syngenta, a leader in crop protection, and ranks third in the high-value commercial seeds market.

“We have made a small move and the interesting part is that we are already getting enquiries from fertiliser and seed companies to join the move,” says Ms Bahl.

The exchange has appointed Kanpur-based Weather Risk Management Pvt Ltd to study and source weather insurance in Jalgaon where maize, chana, banana and cotton are cultivated. MCX has similar plans for Dhamangaon, also in Maharashtra.

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MCX to tie up with Mayhco for seed distribution in Jalgaon