Eight Social Businesses Selected For The Dignified Jobs Accelerator Cohort 2024

Feb 28

The eighth edition of the Dignified Jobs Accelerator brings together a dynamic cohort of impact entrepreneurs creating jobs across the Allied Sectors of Agriculture.

Bangalore, India | February 29, 2024

Upaya Social Ventures today announced the eight early-stage companies selected to participate in the Dignified Jobs Accelerator 2024 for the Allied Sectors of Agriculture cohort. Upaya is a nonprofit organization providing investment and support to early-stage businesses creating dignified jobs for people living in the most extreme poverty.

The eighth edition of the Dignified Jobs Accelerator brings together a dynamic cohort of impact entrepreneurs creating jobs across the allied sectors of agriculture namely aquaculture, animal husbandry and livestock, apiculture, fungiculture, horticulture, and agri waste-to-value. This program is specifically designed to support businesses that work closely with farming, rural, or tribal communities to build a strong supply chain for products that have industrial uses.

For three consecutive years now, the accelerator program brings together Upaya and Yunus Social Business Fund Bengaluru (YSBFB) to combine their expertise and drive their shared commitment to building scalable businesses in India’s most vulnerable communities. The selection criteria aimed to identify revenue-generating companies demonstrating traction and market potential, along with the capacity to create 1,000 jobs within seven years.

The eight early-stage enterprises are:

Dharaksha Ecosolutions specializes in biodegradable packaging material made from crop stubble using biotechnology, preventing stubble burning and offering sustainable alternatives to thermocol and plastic packaging.
Han Agrocare cultivates and processes chemical-free mushroom varieties producing an array of food products as well as nutraceutical components at the intersection of fungiculture, food processing, and biotechnology.
Humble Bee promotes ethical and sustainable beekeeping practices, empowering rural and tribal beekeepers and farmers, particularly women by providing fair prices, and enhanced capacities and livelihoods.
Kullvi Whims sources indigenous Himalayan wool from local pastoralists and employs traditional artisans for their craft to create handspun woolen clothes.
Phoenix Aqua Traders and Solutions operates in the aquaculture sector, specializing in shrimp and marine product trading and dedicated to sustainable and environmentally responsible practices.
Pinnacle Biosciences work on the exploration of algal and seaweed to develop high-value products for the agriculture, veterinary, and aquaculture industries.
Ukhi creates biomaterials from hemp and agricultural waste offering cost-effective, compostable replacements for fossil-based plastics and sustainable textiles made from hemp.
Verdant Impact addresses the critical problem of unsustainable livestock agriculture and its impact on the environment by providing innovative solutions that make livestock farming more sustainable, profitable, and environmentally friendly.

The six-month program will bring together industry experts, business leaders, and investors to provide cohort participants with the necessary knowledge and tools to secure investment and grow their businesses. Additionally, the eight participating companies will undergo specialized training in investment-readiness covering modules on growth and strategy, impact, finance and fundraising, along with personalized support from the Upaya and YSB teams.

As part of the program, each entrepreneur will have the opportunity to pitch their businesses to investors. Upaya will select up to three businesses for USD $50,000 investment. Yunus Social Business Fund Bengaluru will select up to two businesses for potential debt investment of up to USD $100,000.

Please visit Upaya’s website to learn more about the Dignified Jobs Accelerator 2024.

ABOUT UPAYA SOCIAL VENTURES:

Upaya Social Ventures is a nonprofit organization building an inclusive economy by providing investment and support to early-stage businesses creating dignified jobs for people living in the most extreme poverty.

Upaya’s award-winning, impact-first model seeks out and supports oft-overlooked companies creating work that is safe, stable, inclusive, and rewarding—generating a transformative impact on families, communities, and economies.

Since its founding in 2011, Upaya’s portfolio companies have created over 38,000 dignified jobs across India. Please visit upayasv.org for more information.

ABOUT YUNUS SOCIAL BUSINESS FUND BENGALURU:

Yunus Social Business Fund Bengaluru (YSBFB) is an impact fund providing patient debt capital and growth support to social businesses. YSBFB’s mission is to harness the power of business to end poverty and the climate crisis.

Co-founded in 2017 by Suresh Krishna and Vinitha Reddy, YSBFB is the India Fund for Yunus Social Business Funds (Germany), co-founded by Peace Nobel Laureate Prof. Yunus. To date, social businesses in YSBFB portfolio have impacted the lives of 2.4 million people and provided higher incomes to 25,000.