Agri-business innovation in India: SWOC analysis of institutional incubators

Innovation is the backbone of agro-entrepreneurship, as it creates new opportunities and offers higher profits for entrepreneurs. For the development of entrepreneurship in the agriculture sector, there is a need to improve agribusiness at a faster rate than on-farm production. The Agri-Business Incubator (ABI) serves as a hub where entrepreneurs are supported with agricultural technology, business consulting, networking with management experts, access to venture capital, infrastructure, and other essential facilities to help them establish their own agri-business ventures. Over 500 agri-tech projects have been launched in India (Start-up India, 2020). This study was conducted in two states—Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The Agri-Business Incubators in these states, which are affiliated with the State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) and Research Institutes under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), were selected for analysis. Two Agribusiness Incubators each from Kerala and Tamil Nadu were purposively chosen for the study. The paper aims to analyze the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Challenges (SWOC) of these Agri-Business Incubators. Based on a review of existing literature, expert opinions, and focused group discussions with ABI officials, the relevant items were generated, and results were obtained accordingly.