Engineer Turns Coconut into a Variety of Products, Earns ₹25 Lakh/Year

The city lights, for some reason, have always shone brighter.

Or at least that is what most children who grow up in a village are brought up with.

And it’s fair actually.

Migrating to the cities is often one of the most viable options for rural people who want to improve their standard of living, have more sources of employment, and escape the lack of opportunities in general.

Fortunately enough, this picture is changing. People are finally recognizing the potential of agriculture and how it can help fill various gaps.

Government initiatives and social startups are the biggest drivers of this change.

Founded in 2017 by Madhu Kargund, Tengin is one of the social startups that is doing exactly the same — offering a greener, brighter picture of agriculture to local farmers and rural women in the small village of Kargunda in Karnataka. 

THE EARLY DAYS

Madhu grew up in the fields, helping his farmer father cultivate crops and make a living. This was also when he was exposed to the dark side of agriculture, where everything depends on rain, climate, and the environment.

Talking to Startup Pedia in an interview, Madhu says, “My father always believed in education. He didn’t want me to work in the fields and suffer as he did. At that time, sending me to the city was probably the right choice.”

Madhu went on to finish his graduation and post-graduation in Computer Applications from the Malnad College of Engineering in Karnataka.

For another 8 years, Madhu Kargund worked as a Software Engineer and Investment Banker in the corporate world. But something always drew him back to his village.

He says, “I was happy with my life but also battled with an inner conflict – would it be right to continue living my best life in the city when people in my small village struggled to make ends meet? Could I do anything at all to help them? That is when I came across the concept of Zero Budget Farming. This was in 2017.”

Also Read: Kerala Woman Turns ₹74 Lakh Loan into Profitable Coconut Oil Business

Wikipedia describes it as “Zero Budget Natural Farming is a farming system which relies on on-farm biomass to increase productivity of the soil. Practitioners call for non-compost, non-organic inputs to increase fertility by relying on Jeevamrutha and increasing humus content.”

Basically, the total cost of farming comes out to be zero. 

Madhu decided to merge Zero Budget Farming with multi-level cropping and help farmers have a more dependable harvest every season.

This was the beginning of Tengin. He put in his savings and started it as a 100% bootstrapped startup.

INITIAL CHALLENGES

From 2017 to 2020. Madhu was managing both – his corporate career and Tengin.

In the beginning, Madhu’s plan was to put process to paper. He made a comprehensive strategy of shifting local farmers from the monocrop method of farming to multi-level cropping.

Talking about the ideation period, Madhu mentions, “I also knew that my village was rich in coconuts. I was sure that we could do something great with them and help build the village’s economy through them.”

Also Read: Ex-Commando Builds Sustainable Farm in Rajasthan, Earns ₹25 Lakh/Year

Madhu’s parents, in the beginning, weren’t very happy with his decision to come back to the village. By 2020, he had also quit his job to work on Tengin full-time.

But he knew he was onto something impactful. And now, there was no turning back.

When Madhu went to the fields to convince farmers to switch their farming techniques, he was met with hesitation.

When asked how he tackled this, Madhu responds, “So it was clear to me that I needed more credibility to be able to bring that kind of change. I partnered with village panchayats, Shree Shakti Sanghs, and FPOs. I simply told them – you already have an organized group; all I am doing is giving you something new to work on. For example, manufacturing virgin coconut oil.”

Slowly and steadily, Madhu was able to educate and gain the trust of the farmers. Many of them switched from growing only coconuts to now harvesting tomatoes and bananas.

Meanwhile, Madhu began producing value-added products of coconut and was helped by farmers and rural women. 

Tengin began working in a decentralized mode — each farmer would make the oil and drop it at the collection center where it started being processed and manufactured naturally.

Madhu would market them on Instagram and deliver them on his own. He also attended flea markets to display his products and build a customer base.

GROWTH & SUCCESS

Today, Tengin works as a social startup that helps farmers with Zero Budget Farming. It has opened up various Self Help Groups for rural women who help in the coconut production process.

The startup primarily sells coconut products like Virgin Coconut Oil, Coconut Sugar, Coconut chips, Coconut chocolate, Scrubber soap, Charcoal soap, and even cups made out of coconut.

According to Madhu Kargund, “Tengin operates 100% sustainably and uses all parts of the coconut to make value-added products. Apart from that, the waste of the coconut oil is given to the cows.”

Also Read: Hyderabad Couple Launches Gardening Business, Earns ₹50 Lakh Annually

What began with just selling 150 ml of coconut oil has now turned into a venture that supplies over 500 liters of Virgin Coconut Oil every month across the country.

Tengin’s products are sold via a B2B channel of wholesalers and retailers. Locally, the startup provides home delivery. It also provides bulk corporate orders - which are a major source of revenue for the startup.

Explaining the startup’s social initiatives, Madhu says, “We’ve started something called Coco Tourism. This is for customers who want to trace their food. We invite them to our farms and see how everything is hygienically grown and manufactured. Tengin also operates a Sweat Donation camp where we encourage customers and local people to join the farmers and help them out in their field work for a whole day. Customers always come back to me and tell me how this exercise instilled an unwavering gratitude in them.”

Also Read: This Village Girl Earns Rs 1 Cr Yearly By Selling Milk, Paneer & Ghee

Tengin works with about 6-10 artisans and over 20 farmers. The in-office is small and lean.

Tengin achieves a revenue of Rs 3 to 4 lakhs every month. In FY24, it touched a figure of Rs 25 lakhs. The projected revenue for the current financial year is Rs 50 lakhs.

LOOKING AHEAD

Tengin recently opened its first standalone retail store in Bangalore. For the near future, the startup wants to scale their corporate orders and become more widely accessible in the country.

Madhu signs off by saying, “We want to experiment with biowaste resin and make a usable product out of it. The ultimate aim is to become a net zero carbon company.”

FAQ

Q.

When was Tengin founded?

A.

Tengin is a social startup based in Karnataka that was founded in 2017. It works with numerous farmers and rural women and helps them convert the local coconut harvest into sustainable cash flow.

Q.

Who is the founder of Tengin?

A.

Tengin was founded by Madhu Kargund. Hailing from a humble farmer family in the Kargunda village Karnataka, Madhu did his BCA and MCA and went on to work as a software engineer and investment banker in the corporate world for over 8 years.

Q.

What does Tengin sell?

A.

Tengin primarily sells coconut products like Virgin Coconut Oil, Coconut Sugar, Coconut chips, Coconut chocolate, Scrubber soap, Charcoal soap, and even cups made out of coconut.

Q.

What is the revenue of Tengin?

A.

Tengin achieves a revenue of Rupees 3 to 4 lakhs every month. In FY24, it touched a figure of Rupees 25 lakhs. The projected revenue for the current financial year is Rupees 50 lakhs.