Haryana Engineer Quits Job To Start Vermicompost Biz; Clocks Rs 45 Lakh In FY25

When Sumit Giri, hailing from Haryana, was working in a well-paying marketing job, the constant travel and diet changes began impacting his health. He could see himself falling prey to regular fatigue and weakness

Eventually, he decided to do something of his own, dedicate time to his family, and get out of the restrictions of fixed working hours and days.

“I remember looking for a lot of new-age businesses to start. But vermicompost was something that appealed to me the most. In 2022, I launched a small startup in the vermicompost space, took professional training, and invested some money. Three and a half years later, I can safely say that vermicompost is a space that people can thrive in, provided they absorb the technicalities associated with it,” Sumit Giri, founder of Urjaa Agro Farm, tells Startup Pedia in an exclusive interview.

Founded in 2022 by Sumit Giri, Urjaa Agro Farm is a Haryana-based vermicompost startup that has roughly 162 to 170 beds producing approximately 90 tonnes of vermicompost every 3 months. Although there are price fluctuations, Urjaa Agro Farm sells one kilogram of vermicompost for an average of Rs 6. 

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HOW IT ALL BEGAN

In 2012, Sumit Giri completed his BTech degree in electrical engineering from Karnal University. Right after college, he joined a France-based company involved in electric distribution.

But by 2015, he decided to make a pivot in his career and join the marketing field.

“It interested me because I knew marketing is something that needs social skills. And I wanted to meet more people, interact with them, go to new places, and form strategies that increase the reach of brands and businesses,” farming entrepreneur Sumit Giri shares.

For the next seven years, between 2015 and 2021, Sumit Giri would travel all over India and work for startups needing marketing services. This was the time, according to him, that he received the most exposure. 

However, things started going downhill because of a major lifestyle change that happened. 

“There was no stability when it came to food, water, and lodging. One day I would be eating North Indian food, and the next day I would be eating South Indian. There were climatic changes as well that I had to adapt to. I got married as well, and would travel to Haryana a lot to meet my wife and my parents. All of this started taking a toll on my health,” Sumit shares with Startup Pedia. 

By 2021, Sumit Giri began thinking about starting something of his own and becoming an entrepreneur. 

After conducting online research in various new-age entrepreneurial fields like fish farming, mushroom farming, and saffron farming, he decided to zero in on the vermicomposting field.

“The reason why the space of vermicompost attracted me is that it requires a significantly smaller investment amount than other businesses. Plus, it's something that is always in demand,” farming entrepreneur Sumit Giri explains. 

The next step for Sumit was to take professional training from the Maharashtra government’s Department of Agriculture. He also purchased 2500 kilograms of earthworms for Rs 350 per kilogram.

“I used my savings and also took half an acre of land on lease. It is in Yamunanagar in Haryana. But when I was taking the worms to Haryana, many of them died. That was a setback,” Sumit shares.

By 2022, Sumit Giri quit his marketing job and decided to focus completely on his vermicompost business. 

With the remaining earthworms, he prepared approximately 60 to 70 vermicompost beds spread over half an acre. In the beds, he mixed cow dung with earthworms and started giving them undivided attention.

“My first batch of vermicompost came in about five and a half months. It was relatively slower because it was my first time. My output was 700 kilograms of vermicompost per bed,” he says.

With a total initial output of 49 tonnes, Sumit figured out a customer base, including people located near his vermicompost unit as well as some online customers he had established contact with.

This was the start of Urjaa Agro Farm, and Sumit made his first revenue of Rs 3.5 lakh by selling 49 tonnes of vermicompost for Rs 7 per kilogram.

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JOURNEY AND CHALLENGES

Eventually, Urjaa Agro Farm started expanding to more beds. In 2023, Sumit prepared a total of 100 beds on an increased leased land area of 1.5 acres.

According to him, the vermicompost business has four to five cycles where the output can be harvested. This makes it an all-year-round business that needs attention to detail.

Initially, Sumit Giri struggled with employing labour that he could trust. He spent a significant amount of time in the unit and trained the labourers.

“Training the labour is a very important part of the business. For instance, take water. It has to be measured with precision before being added to the beds. One liter here and there…and the entire bed can risk getting ruined,” farming entrepreneur Sumit Giri tells Startup Pedia.

It took Sumit one whole year to understand the vermicompost business from the inside out.

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URJAA AGRO FARM

In 2023, from the 100 beds, Urjaa Agro Farm witnessed an output of approximately 70 tonnes per production cycle. 

“I sold at an average of Rs 6 to Rs 7 and clocked roughly Rs 4 lakh every cycle, which is every 3 to 4 months,” Sumit says.

By 2024, he added ten more beds to the unit.

Today, Sumit Giri’s Urjaa Agro Farm operates with approximately 160 to 170 vermicompost beds. Every three to four months, the vermicompost startup produces an output ranging from 90 tonnes to 120 tonnes. 

The average selling price fluctuates between Rs 6 and Rs 7, while bulk prices are different. Every production cycle brings roughly Rs 6 lakh to Rs 7 lakh to Urjaa Agro Farm.

Apart from selling vermicompost to local retailers, farmers, agriculture brands, and organic manufacturers, Sumit Giri also sells earthworms to people who aspire to start their own vermicompost business.

“The earthworms are sold at a price of Rs 100 per kilogram. Just selling them adds to my revenue a chunk of at least Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12 lakh,” Sumit explains.

In FY25, Urjaa Agro Farm clocked an annual revenue of Rs 45 lakh. This figure includes the sale of vermicompost, the sale of earthworms, as well as the training fee that Sumit charges for training farmers and budding entrepreneurs in the field of vermicomposting.

Sumit claims to make a profit of around Rs 20 lakh every year, with projections to increase his profit to Rs 30 lakh by 2026.

Looking ahead, Sumit Giri wants to continue expanding his vermicompost farming business and widen his network of customers in North India.

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