Fragaria Fruits, a high-tech farming company, has raised $2 million in seed funding and project finance to expand its vision of revolutionising the fruit-eating experience in India. The round was led by WEH Ventures, with participation from Rainmatter, Spiral Ventures, and angel investors such as Sashi Kumar, CEO of Akshayakalpa Organic.
Founded in 2024 by Harish Varadharajan, Damian Lopez-Salazar, and Timothy Van Niekerk, Fragaria combines 25 years of agricultural experience across six countries to address a critical challenge in India’s fruit industry. Despite being one of the world’s largest fruit producers, India struggles to deliver premium-quality fruit consistently throughout the year. Fragaria was created to fill this gap, offering world-class fresh berries year-round using sustainable farming techniques. Its flagship brand, Oh! Fruits, provides European strawberries that are twice as sweet as conventional Indian varieties and have a shelf life three times longer.
India produces 14.8 million tonnes of fruit annually, making it the second-largest fruit producer globally. However, apart from a few crops such as mangoes, pomegranates, papaya, and bananas, most fruits fall short of global class-one quality standards. Consumers face inconsistent quality, limited variety, and seasonal availability. Fragaria aims to bridge this gap by producing premium-quality, sustainably grown fruits year-round under the Oh! Fruits brand.
By using Controlled Environmental Agriculture (CEA) and vertical farming, Fragaria has built a sustainable, scalable model to grow premium strawberries in all seasons. Its pilot farm in Chennai demonstrated that world-class produce can be grown even in tropical India, where traditional farming struggles with seasonality. With the new investment, Fragaria will expand production in Bengaluru, increasing daily output from 2-3 kg to 120-150 kg.
Timothy Van Niekerk, Co-founder, Fragaria Fruits, said: “This funding will allow us to scale our operations and reach a larger consumer base with consistently high-quality fruit. It’s a key step forward in our mission to build India’s most trusted and beloved fruit brand, providing fresh, year-round produce to millions of people across the country.”
Rohit Krishna, Partner, WEH Ventures, said: “We believe Fragaria is addressing a critical inefficiency in India’s fruit supply chain. Their model blends cutting-edge farming technology with sustainable practices, which is a game-changer for India’s premium fruit market. We are supporting them in providing consumers with fresh, year-round fruit, without compromising on quality or sustainability.”
The funding will help Fragaria scale operations in Bengaluru, expand its premium fruit portfolio to include blueberries and raspberries, and provide a year-round supply of high-quality, sustainable produce to the Indian market. The company’s commitment to sustainability is evident in its water recycling systems, solar power integration, and efforts to minimise farming’s environmental footprint while maintaining affordability.
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