Episode Details

US Dockworkers End East Coast and Gulf Ports Strike | Nepal Growers Were Largely Spared in Record Flash Flooding | Researchers Affirm Tea Reduces Risk of Stroke

India Tea News

Darjeeling Workers Bonus Demands End In Strike | Amul Plans To Diversify Into Tea

Signup www.tea-biz.com

NEWSMAKER – Pinaaki Aggarwal, co-founder Agravity Systems

GUEST – Environment and sustainable tea consultant Ashok Batra, former chair J. Thomas brokers and former consultant Rainforest Alliance, India.

PLUS | Precision Agriculture Launches a Tea Transformation

Three of the biggest challenges tea growers worldwide face are climate change-accelerated pest attacks and the rapid spread of diseases that lower yields and impact quality. Heavy use of chemicals and mitigation efforts are compounded by acute labor shortages. India alone is experiencing crop loss estimated at 147 million kilos annually, costing growers billions of rupees.

Tea sustainability and environment consultant Ashok Batra joins Tea Biz in a conversation with Pinaaki Aggarwal, co-founder of Agravity Systems, a deep-tech precision agriculture startup focused on tea, building and employing a system of autonomous drones and imaging sensors to monitor, analyze, and diagnose plant health problems on the fly and then treat them with precision using advanced AI, sensors, and robotics.

“The solution that we bring to the table will minimize the use of chemicals and maximize the productivity and quality of tea by providing an end-to-end solution,” says Aggarwal. “Using AI and drones, we scan the tea field and identify the issues. Then, using another set of drones, we target and treat those issues. Overall, the yield increases, the chemical usage decreases, and crop loss significantly declines to nearly zero,” he says.