Dharaksha Ecosolutions, a Faridabad-based start-up, specializes in mycelium-based biodegradable packaging. It is among the seven revenue-generating start-ups selected under Cisco and Social Alpha’s Krishi Mangal second edition cohort, a scale-up accelerator program launched in 2021 to support start-ups in agriculture and allied livelihoods.
The worsening Air Quality Index (AQI) in Delhi NCR and other Northern Indian cities is part of the yearly news cycle. One of the major contributors to this issue is emissions from the burning of crop stubble (parali) by farmers in Punjab and Haryana.
Stubble collection at farm by Dharaksha team
Dharaksha, where ‘Dhara’ means earth and ‘Raksha’ means saving, is a group of dedicated, proactive innovators working on solutions to protect Mother Earth from hazardous air pollution caused by stubble burning. This biotech start-up, founded in 2020 by Arpit Dhupar and Anand Bodh, harnesses the natural ability of mycelium (roots of fungi) to break down complex organic matter through the secretion of enzymes. As mycelium continues to grow, it creates a nearly solid structure within its digested substrate.
The ability of mycelium to grow on various biomass and produce complex structures with a range of physical, chemical, biological, and mechanical properties is being utilized to produce a variety of materials that can be used as sustainable alternatives in packaging, food, construction, textile, medicine, and cosmetics industries. For bio-composite production, the substrate is inoculated with the culture of a selected fungal strain, allowing the mycelium to grow under specific humidity, air, and temperature conditions. Once the desired growth is obtained, the material is oven-dried/hot-pressed to kill the cells, remove water, and achieve a predetermined density.
As paddy stubble (parali) has a lignin content of 15-16%, it is difficult for even fungus to break down within the optimum time to achieve the desired material properties. However, Dharaksha, with years of experimentation and iteration, has been able to create a unique mix of ingredients comprising crop stubble and simple sugars (enabling faster digestion), inoculated with a fungal strain (an engineered improvement of a wild native to India). Under the right temperature, pressure, and humidity conditions, this fungal strain starts digesting and binding the substrate through the inward growth of the mycelium structure. Later, the partially digested material is transferred into a mould, taking its shape, and eventually ends up holding the substrate material in a tight, cohesive manner due to its dense fibrous growth. This material is ultimately dried in an oven to neutralize the fungus. The final product is a bio-composite with properties similar to thermocol (polystyrene).
Anand Bodh (L), Arpit Dhupar (R) founder Dharaksha Ecosolutions
“We believe that changing the way we approach agriculture is probably the intervention with the most significant potential impact on slowing down global warming. As a country, we burn over 100 million tonnes of agricultural waste every year, which is more than even the Amazon fires. Imagine using this biomass and creating a circular flow of materials. This would drastically reduce emissions and reduce waste generation; the impact on air quality and the environment would be unparalleled. We want to create sustainable, high-quality, and highly useful alternate materials from agricultural residue while providing monetary incentives for our farmers not to burn them,” said Arpit Dhupar, co-founder of Dharaksh Ecosolutions.
With their unique biodegradable packaging solution, Dharaksha addresses many issues that primarily plague our country. Due to a lack of affordable means to dispose of waste and the short gap between the harvesting of paddy and the sowing of wheat, the farmers in Punjab and Haryana burn over 23 million tonnes of paddy straw waste every year. This leads to unprecedented levels of air pollution, with AQI soaring past measurable limits of 999+ in some regions of North India, suffocating 80 million people.
Secondly, Dharaksha’s biodegradable packaging material can easily replace thermocol, technically known as expanded polystyrene (EPS), a form of plastic. Due to its high volume, low weight, rigid form with high thermal insulation capacity and impact resistance, it is used as packaging material and in construction. At least 5 million tonnes of thermocol are produced annually. However, like any plastic, it takes about five decades before it can completely break down, and in the process of breakdown, it releases micro-plastics that enter our food chain.
Key USPs of the material prepared by Dharaksha Ecosolutions include sustainability, high strength and surface finish, cost-effective EPRs, and bespoke customer experience via laser branding. The product is completely biodegradable in 60 days under normal soil conditions along with a shelf life of 2.5 years. Dharaksha’s material is ahead of its competitors’ packaging solutions, such as paper pulp mould packaging. Such alternative packaging solutions are being promoted with current government regulations, as companies must declare their plastic and thermocol usage. They then must set up reverse logistics for recycling by themselves or outsource the same to a third party. This process also known as extended producers’ responsibility (EPR) for plastic packaging, is an additional cost implication that can be saved by using biodegradable alternatives. As Dharaksha’s packaging solution is the most cost-effective right now, it can save companies the combined cost of EPR and conventional thermocol.
Most Indians are ready to pay a premium for sustainable packaging and the market also backs the uptake of this material. This unique customer experience of finding biodegradable packaging material during unboxing, is a high leverage for clients. Since, this material is fire retardant and waterproof, it can be uniquely engraved with a laser to create a bespoke brand placement and marketing opportunity for customers. Each tonne of material created by Dharaksha saves about 91,40,00,000 cubic meters of air from being polluted.
Different types of packaging material by Dharaksha
“Many of our customers have voiced concerns about using thermocol and plastic in packaging. Since our products are sold in fragile glass jars, the challenges with courier services made this an ongoing issue. However, we’ve now transitioned to sustainable packaging provided by Dharaksha Ecosolutions, and we have experienced no damage during transit. Additionally, this packaging is entirely home-compostable, allowing you to simply toss it into your pot or garden, where it naturally turns into compost. We are thrilled about this shift in our packaging approach,” feedback from Gourmet Jars, an existing user of Dharaksha’s packaging materials.
Krishi Mangal, a flagship program of Cisco executed in partnership with Social Alpha, is not only focused on incubating agritech start-ups but also brings together a robust ecosystem comprising investors, domain experts, and government stakeholders to catalyze initiatives. Aligned with Cisco’s commitment to finding new ways to inspire a generation who want to use technology for social good, the program aims to bring to the market scalable solutions that can enhance farming and help in making agriculture more sustainable and adaptive, playing a vital role in the global effort to combat climate change.
“According to a study by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), globally, almost 450 million tonnes of crop residues are burnt every year, resulting in 1.2 million tonnes of methane emissions. At Cisco, we truly believe that with the transformative power of Dharaksha Ecosolutions, agricultural waste can be turned into a sustainable alternative addressing not only the environmental impact but also the long-festering challenges of low profitability and productivity that have been aggravated over time in the agriculture sector,” says Harish Krishnan, Managing Director & Chief Policy Officer, Cisco India & SAARC.
With the aid of Cisco’s Krishi Mangal, Dharaksha Ecosolutions plans to expand its existing production capacity from 6,000 Sq. Ft. to 16,000 sq. Ft. By leveraging economies of scale, they aim to cater to the mass packaging market, and the raw materials for these plants will be sourced from stubble-prone districts such as Ambala and Kurukshetra.
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Disclaimer: This article has been produced on behalf of Social Alpha by Mediawire team.