Ex-Gojek, Oyo execs’ agritech startup nets $3.8m seed funding

Eratani, an Indonesia-based agritech management firm, has raised US$3.8 million in a seed round led by TNB Aura, with AgFunder, Trihill Capital, and BIG Ventures also participating. The startup last raised US$1.6 million in a pre-seed round in June.

Eratani co-founders (from left) Kevin Juan Tanggo Laksono, Andrew Soeherman, and Angles Gani / Photo credit: Eratani

In a statement, Eratani noted that the agricultural sector in Indonesia remains highly fragmented, with independent farmers lacking proper access to markets, supplies, and financing. The firm also mentioned that 75% of local farmers still use traditional cultivation methods.

The startup gives farmers access to field data statistics for productivity, which includes scientific agri-input instructions, agricultural education, and the distribution of their agri-output for commerce.

The company – which was founded in 2021 by ex-Gojek executive Andrew Soeherman, former Oyo executive Kevin Laksono, and ex-Indocyber Global Teknologi business development head Angles Gani – has already onboarded 10,000 farmers across the island of Java. Within a year of operating, it has helped manage 8,000 hectares of land and aided farmers in producing 52,000 tons of rice.

The fresh funds will be used to scale operations, fine-tune farming management programs, expand to new areas in Indonesia, reinforce its core operations, and onboard 50,000 farmers by the end of 2024.

Collaborating with Indonesia’s Ministry of Communications and Informatics’ Startup Studio Indonesia and the Agricultural Ministry of Indonesia and the Indonesian State Logistics Agency, Eratani has also committed to supporting food independence initiatives in its home country.

See also: Indonesian agritech firm rakes in $2.5m in seed money to support middlemen