Agritech startup DeHaat has announced its acquisition of Freshtrop Fruits' export network, including grading, packing, precooling centers, and its workforce, encompassing top leadership. According to a regulatory filing by Freshtrop Fruits, a business valued at Rs 250 crore, founded in 1992 and previously listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (now BSE), DeHaat, backed by Sofina and Temasek, will be paying a total of Rs 77 crore (approximately $9.3 million) for this acquisition. Shashank Kumar, the founder and CEO of DeHaat, envisions establishing a Rs 1,000 crore export enterprise for fruits and vegetables from India within the next three to four years.

DeHaat has acquired a total of six companies, including Vezamart, Farmguide, Helicrofter, YCook, FieldFresh Foods, and Freshtrop Fruits. This latest move marks DeHaat's deeper foray into the export of fruits and vegetables, an arena it initially entered through the acquisition of Field Fresh in May 2022. Field Fresh, a collaboration between Bharti Enterprises and Del Monte Pacific, specializes in exporting exotic fruits and vegetables to European markets. While primarily an agri-input marketplace, DeHaat is increasingly garnering a significant portion of its business from the output side of the agriculture supply chain, particularly in exports.

At present, the export segment contributes 10% to DeHaat's overall revenues. Shashank Kumar mentioned, "Post this recent acquisition, it will rise to 18-20%. Although this figure will grow swiftly, it will stabilize at around 25% of the total business." Freshtrop Fruits operates in two business verticals: export and processing. The processing arm will continue to function independently within the company. As DeHaat assimilates the export segment, the deal will lead to the addition of 45 new employees to the startup.