Haryana Man Quits TCS Job; Now Grows Moringa With His Wife, Clocked Rs 30 Lakh Turnover In FY24

From protecting the liver and nourishing the skin to boosting heart health, the benefits of moringa are many.

In the Indian context, drumstick leaves went viral on the Internet when Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he ate moringa parathas. 

But for Jitender Mann and his wife, Sarla, moringa is nothing new. They have been experimenting with the Ayurvedic plant since 2017.

It all started when Jitender brought some moringa leaves from a friend in Bengaluru. He planted them on the terrace of their house. After consuming them, he noticed improvements in his heart health and metabolism.

In 2017, Jitender Mann and Sarla decided to take up moringa farming on their ancestral land in the village of Mehmudpur in Haryana. 

Six years later, they are the owners of the Husband Wife Farm brand and are recognized for their authentic, preservative-free moringa powder and capsules.

With an annual turnover surging to lakhs, the startup founders share their story in an exclusive interview with Startup Pedia.

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THE BEGINNING

Jitender Mann and Sarla are a married couple who hail from Haryana. While Sarla is an MCom graduate who decided to take over the household responsibilities, Jitender Mann landed a job at Tata Consultancy Services and worked in the company for over 11 years.

“Jitender had to travel across Bengaluru, Noida, and Chennai and kept busy. But with time, we started noticing that the job was taking a toll on his health. One day, it would be a back pain issue. The next day it would be immense fatigue and respiratory problems. Both of us yearned to go back to the village life but didn’t have a concrete plan yet,” says Sarla Mann, the Co-founder of Husband Wife Farm in an exclusive interview with Startup Pedia.

Jitender had always been interested in gardening. At their house terrace in Delhi, he had made an entire garden growing fresh vegetables and flowers. One day, a friend from Bengaluru gave him some moringa leaves to take home.

Having only surface-level knowledge about the plant, Jitender decided to grow it on the terrace garden.

Jitender and Sarla looked up moringa’s benefits on the Internet and realized it was a goldmine of nutrition. 

“It was a YouTube video that really opened us up to moringa. An elderly couple from the US claimed that moringa helped them control their blood pressure, sugar, and even arthritis,” shares Sarla.

“When the leaves started coming, I crushed them for Jitender to consume with water. To our surprise, he began feeling lighter the very next day. It felt like his stomach was detoxified. In just some weeks, his wellness was back on track,” she adds.

This was their sign to quit city life and adopt a more organic lifestyle.

Jitender Mann quit his job at TCS and moved to his ancestral village, Mehmudpur, along with Sarla.

The Haryana-based couple decided to grow moringa on their ancestral land spread over 2 acres.

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JOURNEY AND CHALLENGES

When the startup founders started growing moringa, they didn’t plan to commercialize it immediately. They were beginners and wanted to achieve expertise before selling the leaves and turning the experimental venture into a full-fledged business.

Initially, Jitender and Sarla bought seeds from the market. But soon realized that the quality wasn’t up to the mark.

Their next option was to indulge in mulching the land. As soon as some moringa leaves would start coming, they would mix them back in the soil.

“For close to two years, we continued the mulching practice. Our sole aim was to improve the quality of the soil,” startup founder Sarla explains. 

To prepare the land, install groundwater irrigation facilities, and cover labour costs, the entrepreneurs invested Rs 35 lakh from their personal savings.

It was a significant investment and people around them questioned them and doubted their moringa cultivation plans. 

But the couple kept moving forward, employing a blend of scientific and natural methods in their agriculture practice.

“We realized that the Indian food chain has a lot of chemicals in it. This acts as a block when it comes to the body healing itself. So from the beginning, we were clear that we wouldn't use any pesticides for our moringa leaves and products,” Sarla remarks.

For two long years, Jitender Mann and Sarla sustained without making any earnings from their moringa cultivation. 

Finally, towards the end of 2018, the couple decided to commercialize their moringa farming venture. 

They started selling the moringa leaves to neighbours and their mutual contacts under the Husband Wife Farm brand. 

In the first three to four years, their annual turnover was around Rs 20 lakh. 

“It is important to note that we weren't making a significant profit margin then. Labour in Haryana is expensive and a large part of the turnover  had to be reinvested in the moringa farming business,” entrepreneur Sarla Mann emphasizes.

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HUSBAND WIFE FARM: AUTHENTIC MORINGA CULTIVATION 

As a pioneer moringa farming brand in Haryana, the Husband Wife Farm startup has become widely known for the authenticity and quality that it offers. 

Startup founders Jitender Mann and Sarla Mann are firm advocates of moringa. Calling it a “first-aid” for the body, they claim that their customers have seen positive results in the first ten to fifteen days of consuming the moringa powder and capsules sold by them.

“Today nine out of ten households have members struggling with arthritis, cervical blockages, muscular discomfort, and painful veins. Moringa helps with everything. It even has anti-cancer properties,” entrepreneur Sarla Mann tells Startup Pedia. 

Most of the brand's customers come from positive word-of-mouth marketing. 

One distinguishing factor of the Husband Wife Farm moringa brand is that their products do not leave an uncomfortable, bitter aftertaste. The founders claim that this is because absolutely no chemicals go behind growing the moringa leaves and then making value-added products from them. 

Through their moringa farming venture and brand, Jitender Mann and Sarla sell moringa powder, moringa capsules, and beetroot powder.

With customers across India, the USA, and the UAE, the brand's products are sold from their website, local stores, and direct bulk orders. 

“Our cost is slightly higher than other moringa brands available in the market. But that is because we are offering premium-quality moringa. After trying moringa from us, customers do not go back to other brands,” Sarla shares.

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GROWTH STORY

As moringa farming entrepreneurs, Jitender Mann and Sarla Mann have initiated significant employment generation through their venture. 

Twenty rural women help the founders in cultivating moringa, handpicking and drying the leaves, and then converting them into value-added products. 

“These women have received a stable employment opportunity and we are grateful that we could provide this to them,” says Sarla while talking to the journalist from Startup Pedia. 

In FY24, Jitender and Sarla’s moringa farming business clocked an annual turnover of Rs 30 lakh. In FY25, the turnover came at a figure of Rs 21 lakh. 

“Turnover figures keep fluctuating because a large part of moringa farming is affected by weather conditions. If the weather is harsh, output suffers,” Sarla explains. 

Additionally, the entrepreneur emphasizes that close to 50% of the turnover  is allocated to labour costs. 

“People think moringa cultivation is easy. But it's not. It's a summer-loving plant. During the winter, there's literally no output,” the startup founder shares. 

“It's been close to six years since we started our brand. Only one month ago did we manage to buy our own car. Even though we love moringa farming, we don't want to mislead people into thinking it's a get-rich-quick scheme,” Sarla adds.

LOOKING AHEAD

The moringa farming entrepreneurs are currently working on a new setup that works on greenhouse technology. 

In the near future, Jitender Mann and Sarla Mann want to list their products on Amazon and Flipkart and scale their brand.

Innovating and selling 100% pure turmeric powder is next on the list for the Husband Wife Farm brand.

Also Read: Homemaker Starts Farming At Home Out Of Passion To Produce Organic Veggies & Microgreens For Family, Now Owns Organic Food Startup