The younger generation, today, is coming up with brilliant entrepreneurial concepts in various sectors. From agriculture to dairy, we can witness new techniques being adopted; are not just going organic. These practices also bring good money to farmers.
With increasing awareness around animal abuse int the country, people are gradually cutting down on their consumption of animal products like meat and dairy items. Little by little, people are adopting veganism and house after house is replacing its paneer with soybean, and animal milk with vegan milk.
To promote the idea, 22-year-old animal lover Abhay Rangan started a vegan milk business, encouraging people to shun animal milk and eliminate animal cruelty. Abhay established his business along with his mother and today, the mother-son duo has made their place in the dairy industry.
Vegan milk is prepared from various fruits and flowers rather than extracting it from an animal. While most milk comes from factory farms, and is extracted from confined animals, vegan milk refrains from using cattle.
“I want people to use this milk so that we can stop animal abuse,” says Abhay in an interview with KenFolios.
Abhay, an engineering student, does the manufacturing and marketing of the milk. He is currently pursuing his higher studies abroad. A few months back, he started his venture along with his mother. He would travel 500 km every week to get a steady supply of vegan milk. He would cover the entire South India from Bengaluru to achieve his supply target.
However, his exhausting journey ceased when he finally started his website and started selling the products online. He tells that he had to face a lot of hardship in the beginning. A major part of the milk was spoilt because of the journey, also resulting in losses.
Initially, Abhay would prepare milk using household utensils, which was a challenging task. Gradually, he bought the required machinery and began his start up Veganarke. He also started his own website. Today, he sells different types of vegan milk online. He says that even though there are many animal activists, not many people are working on this level, as the technique is expensive.
Abhay wanted to bring these products in the market at an affordable price. Gradually, his hard work started paying off. As a student, he began researching on cheaper methods for manufacturing so that the investment could be controlled. He started with almond and coconut milk as they were cheap and easily available. As people became more aware, they started purchasing his products.
According to Abhay, his company is the first in India to supply vegan yogurt. The best thing about that product is that it doesn’t require any refrigeration systems for preserving. Abhay believes that his concept will play an important role in the near future to minimise the cruelty on cattle.
Along the journey, he met another animal activist. He loved Abhay’s concept and his work to prevent animal cruelty. He raised funds of Rs 2.5 crore for the venture. Abhay plans to utilise the funds for massive expansion of his business.
Abhay also started a non-profit organization SARV (Society for Animal Rights and Veganism), at the age of 16, to promote veganism and animal rights. With the help of its volunteers, SARV was active in more than 10 cities.
Abhay’s concept will not only minimise animal abuse but will also set an example for the youth who desires to establish themselves in the dairy industry. With more people adopting veganism, we hope that we will be able to prevent or animals and give them love.
