Stellapps

Stellapps is India’s first dairy technology Solutions Company, building automation tools
integrated with cloud, mobility, and data analytics for dairy farms, cooperatives, and private
dairies. Stellapps has not only uniquely positioned itself as a niche company but its idea and
market have been validated in its three years of existence by drawing good number of clients and
funding at right stages.

Stellapps is an end-to-end dairy technology solutions company – the first of its kind in India.
They are an IIT-Madras incubated company founded by a group of IITians and technologists
with a strong industry background and rich experience including IIT-Madras, IIT-Kharagpur and
IIM-Ahmedabad alumni, with over 18 years of Industry experience across Wipro, Nortel,
Ericsson, Alcatel-Lucent, AT&T, Vodafone, Telstra, Bharti-Airtel, Aircel, Avaya, Cisco et al.
They produce and procure comprehensive farm optimization and monitoring support, which
helps dairy farmers and cooperatives maximize profits while minimizing effort. Stellapps is
funded by Omnivore Capital – a fund anchored by Godrej Agrovet Limited and investment
patrons include a large group of IIT alumni.

Their innovative applications and state-of-the-art mechanization tools leverage Internet of Things
(IoT), Big Data, Cloud, Mobility, and Data Analytics to improve Agri- Dairy supply chain
parameters, including milk production, milk procurement, cold chain, animal insurance and
farmer payments. Their SmartMoo™ IoT router and in-premise IoT Controller acquire data via
sensors that are embedded in Milking Systems, Animal Wearables, Milk Chilling Equipment &
Milk Procurement Peripherals, and transmit the same to the Stellapps SmartMoo™ Big Data
Cloud Service Delivery Platform (SDP) where the SmartMoo™ suite of applications analyse and
crunch the received data before disseminating the Analytics & Data Science outcome to various
stakeholders over low-end and smart mobile devices.

Stellapps is the first of its kind startup in India working towards the digitization of the dairy
supply chain. Started in the year 2011, they are an IIT Madras incubated, Bangalore based,
Internet of Things (IoT) startup with a primary focus on data acquisition and machine learning.
Milk is the largest crop on this planet and there is a strong need for technology interventions,
especially in the emerging markets where the yield per animal is low, traceability is inadequate
and quality is not up to the mark. Digitization of the Agri-Dairy supply chain in the emerging
markets is where they help unlock unprecedented value on a very large scale.

They digitize & optimise Milk Production, Milk Procurement & Coldchain Management through
SmartMoo™ platform (Full Stack IoT solution) which helps dairy farmers and cooperatives
maximize profits while minimizing effort. Currently, the SmartMoo™ platform & suite of apps
touch over two billion liters of milk annually. SmartMoo™ IoT Platform is the first step towards
creating measurable value for all stakeholders including farmers. It provides measurable data for
cattle insurance. The SmartMoo™ Cloud is capable of supporting data arising out of tens of
millions of liters of milk through the milk production, procurement and cold chain flow across
millions of farmers.

Currently, Stellapps’ products include various applications for milk production, procurement,
cold-chain management, a farmer wallet and cattle insurance application.

How they do it

Stellapps SmartMo IoT platform acquires data via sensors that are embedded in milking systems,
animal wearables, milk chilling equipment, and milk procurement peripherals. The data acquired
is transmitted to the Stellapps SmartMo Big Data Cloud Service Delivery Platform (SDP) where
the Stellapps SmartMo suite of applications analyze and crunch the received data before
forwarding the analytics & data science outcome to various stakeholders over low-end and smart
mobile devices. The patent-pending hardware and software is designed to scale horizontally
across other industry verticals.

Understanding the problem

Since the cattle is the central element in milk production, it is extremely important to see that it
is:
a) Healthy;
b) At an optimum level of productivity;
c) Optimally provided fodder, water and healthy housing
If a farmer is aware of the above parameters, dairy farming will be profitable.
Traditionally, dairy farming is considered a labor intensive industry where one has to put a large
labor force in order to get more yield. It’s a big myth since the yield can be increased by merely
maintaining cleanliness, feeding the cattle at right times, automating most of the processes and
installing chiller in the milk production plant. Though it might need electricity but the biogas
produced from the cow dung can generate enough power.

Stellapps infrastructure provides actionable insights to optimize your dairy supply chain

The company is focussed on creating varied connected products that optimise the agricultural
supply chain, right from the production of milk to its procurement, besides looking at cold-chain
storage, farmer payments and animal insurance.

Target Market:
India accounts for 16% of the global milk production. However, the dairy farming industry is
highly fragmented with the average size of herd being 2-3 milch animals. The majority of
farmers can be categorized as small/medium sized. Dairy farm is a huge vertical and Stellapps
has done its homework well. They are targeting the small and medium farmers (who own five to
25 cows) who don’t have any technology intervention/support. Stellapps is offering solutions in
milk production stage and keeping a distance from the marketing of the produce. Unlike any
other profession, dairy farmers end up working for more than eight hours a day and still remain
non-profitable. Stellapps solutions include multiple automation and knowledge-based solutions
which optimize the milk production process and keep a check on the health of the cattle.

Funding

Stellapps has raised a total of $18.8M in funding over 7 rounds. Their latest funding was raised
on Dec 10, 2019 from a Venture - Series Unknown round. Stellapps is funded by 11 investors.
Stride Ventures and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation are the most recent investors.

In 2017, the company raised an undisclosed amount in a round led by Blume Ventures, along
with participation by Binny Bansal, Flipkart Group CEO. The company received its seed funding
in 2013 from Omnivore Partners and was initially incubated at the rural technology business
incubator in IIT Madras.
Funding round:

The funds raised will be used for monitoring the quantity and quality of milk, storage facilities,
creating wearable devices for tracking cattle health and infrastructure for housing the cattle.
Ultimately, the focus is on reducing costs for the farmer by ensuring there are higher milk yields
and consistent health of their cattle.

Products and technology

Stellapps’ products are designed to optimize the entire milk production process right from setting
up the right kind of infrastructure and housing facilities for cattle, to fulfilling the power
requirements by setting up biogas power plants.

SmartMoo
It’s an end-to-end dairy farm services product with focus on clean milk production protocols,
productivity improvement, cost optimization and real-time data access. It includes:

 Automated Milking System (SmartAMS)

 Bulk Milk Chilling System (SmartBMC)
 End to end farm setup services (cow comfort infrastructure and housing, cow selection,
silage, vermicompost, veterinary & para-veterinary services)
 Farm Layout Design & Modelling (cow shed, milking parlours and labour quarters)
 Consulting for productivity improvement and input cost optimization
 Bio Gas setup for off-grid farm power
 Farm management equipment (Hoof trimmers, De-horners, Foot-bath, Groomers, Anti-
kick bar, Cleaning-in-Place solutions)

Other products include:

smartFarms: It’s a cloud based farm and herd management system for animal recording,
productivity and peak-yield management, breeding, preventive health care, fodder and veterinary
care.

smartBMC: It’s a premium milk chilling equipment with internet and mobile enabled
management.

smartAMS: Basically a milk line based automated milking systems (AMS), it starts from a
simple 3 station parlour to large herring bone parlours bundled with cow identification,
automated milk meters, cluster retrieval and milk sampling – enabling Udder-to-Cup clean milk
production protocols.

ConTrak: It enables internet based, real-time management of cold-chain with enhanced

reporting, pilferage reduction & tamper proofing features, as applicable to Bulk Milk Coolers
(BMCs), Silos and Cold Rooms.
Pricing and tech adaption

Stellapps enjoys a competitive pricing advantage as compared to similar technology providers

(typically overseas). The pricing includes the entire budget right from the infrastructure
development to the milking and storage. Since the complete analysis takes place on cloud, the
farmer has little to do to understand the information being transmitted from the sensors (placed
on cattle and chilling systems) to the veterinary experts. Data is transferred via wireless networks
to Stellapps servers and can be monitored through their Android apps.

Stellapps follows the philosophy of working with the farmer where they make profits only when
a farmer makes profit. Their revenue is derived from a fixed share per litre of milk production
from a profit making farmer. This way, it doesn’t pinch the farmer and Stellapps manages to
keep their skin in the game.

Value Proposition
1. Cost effective end-to-end Dairy Farm solution: Powered by patent pending
technologies, Stellapps has broken some compelling price barriers to ensure that world-
class dairy automation solutions are available at emerging market price points.

2. Cost reduction: Reduced input costs by ensuring automation of milking procedures and
making things less dependent on external labour. Fodder management modules to ensure
low input cost per litre (and optimizing dependency on expensive external feeds)

3. Preventive Healthcare: Advanced cloud-based analytics ensures sub-clinical

intervention and significant reduction in sickness incidents. Thereby, increasing herd
milk productivity levels.
 4. Peak yield management: Advanced activity meters & cloud-based analytics ensures
better heat detection (ovulation cycles) to manage lactation cycles better and reducing
inter-calving periods. Thereby, significantly increasing productivity levels.

5. Improved Cull Value - Data recording of all herd parameters ensures that the cows fetch
a significant premium when sold.

6. Reduced Insurance Premium – Real time view of herd data and reliable data recording
mechanism helps reduce cattle insurance premium by over 50%.

7. Premium Milk production - Controlled and tamper proof cold-chain management (e.g.,
remote controlled bulk milk coolers) helps ensure that the bacterial load is minimized and
the milk (and byproducts) can be sold as a premium product.

The business model

Operating in the B2B space, Stellapps is currently selling to dairy service providers such as
Hatsun, Lactalis, Heritage, and Prabhat. Their turnover for FY 2016-17 was $3.2 million.

Since they are a full stack IoT company and take a solution-led approach, they sell their products
to address problems across the supply chain, including production, procurement and cold chain.
They also supply their solution in a zero-capex model – i.e., completely opex based/rental
payment models where they charge their customers for subscriptions and cloud services.

They plan to monetise transactions such as charging for API (application programming interface)
access to the platform, and extend into other verticals such as a factory / industrial setting, and
other cold chain segments.
They believe that they have no direct competitors offering a similar IoT-based solution. But there
are product players, who are primarily hardware-centric companies, and an IoT platform is not
part of their approach.

Pricing and tech adaption

Stellapps enjoys a competitive pricing advantage as compared to similar technology providers

(typically overseas). The pricing includes the entire budget right from the infrastructure
development to the milking and storage. Since the complete analysis takes place on cloud, the
farmer has little to do to understand the information being transmitted from the sensors (placed
on cattle and chilling systems) to the veterinary experts. Data is transferred via wireless networks
to Stellapps servers and can be monitored through their Android apps.

Stellapps follows the philosophy of working with the farmer where they make profits only when
a farmer makes profit. Their revenue is derived from a fixed share per litre of milk production
from a profit making farmer. This way, it doesn’t pinch the farmer and Stellapps manages to
keep their skin in the game.

Scything Middlemen:

In spite of agriculture being the predominant occupation in India, a country that is not only the
second most populous, but also self-sufficient in food, most of the farming community in India
lives in absolute poverty. Among the worst-affected groups are the dairy producers. The main
culprit is red tape: middlemen are notorious for reaping the profits that rightfully belong to
farmers.

Stellaps focuses on procurement from individual farmers. Since transparency is missing in the
transactions with farmers, they have developed a solution that increases traceability. Using IT,
cloud computing, and tablets and other hardware, Stellapps keeps a record of all business that
takes place between farmers and agents.

The collection center is a point through which they empower the farmers. The agent no longer
has power over the farmer. In spite of the fact that most of the dairy farmers are yet to be tech-
savvy, there is not much of a challenge for them to get benefits from Stellapps solutions. The
milk that the farmer gives to the agent is analyzed by a milk analyzer; its readings are
automatically captured and recorded in the tablet, without any intervention from the agent, and
the farmer gets SMS with the details. Stellapps also provides (via outsourcing) hardware such as
milk analyzer, weighing scale and RDO. However, the core of its technology is the tablet, the
IoT solution that information from the interfaces of six or seven peripherals, which is then
uploaded to the cloud.