Happy Grocers

Creating a sustainable food system in Thailand
2021 SEED Low Carbon Awards; IKI BMU
Sustainable Agriculture
Bangkok
Thailand

Happy Grocers sources responsibly produced fruit and vegetable directly from farmers around Thailand, who avoid the use of chemical pesticide, antibiotics, and hormones, protect the environment and support local communities. The enterprise then distributes them through an online home delivery service all over Bangkok and with a grocery truck that goes to over 40 apartment blocks in the city.

Their customers currently are expats who work for embassies, NGOs, and international schools (95%) and Thai people who previously lived abroad (5%). Revenue streams come from sales of these products, organising farm trips, offering sustainability education workshops and events.

Eco-Inclusive Impacts
Happy Grocers employ sustainable farmers, in-door farmers, and food waste management personnel, and train them to transition technology-based farming practice. The farmers practice sustainable agriculture in the most resource efficient way (i.e. saving water, land and avoiding chemical pesticides).
  • Empowerment of potential female entrepreneurs to start their own business through educational talks and start-up talks. Employment happens at the farms by Happy Grocers team
  • Employment of sustainable farmers, in-door farmers, and food waste management personnel
  • Training and helping farmers transition to technology-based farming practices

 

  • Identifying and selling Thai produced agricultural products
  • Ensuring farmers practice sustainable agriculture in the most resource efficient way that saves water, land, avoid chemical pesticide. These methods include organic, permaculture, foraging, and in-door farming

 

  •   Introducing cooperative models so that farmers don’t need to invest upfront and only have to pay back the initial investment through profits from their harvest

 

 

Partners

Happy Grocers sources and sells products from local producers that practice sustainable agriculture and have sustainable business models. They offer fair prices and support skill building and sharing on organic, permaculture, foraging, vertical farming with digital technology farming methods. They prevent food waste and provide consumers insight into food origins so they can make better consumption decisions.

Srila is a strategic partner contributing agricultural expertise, inspection of the farming process, soil quality, the product quality for level of chemicals, and farming training. They are the first supplier, and also share their extended network of farmers.

The Thai National Innovation Agency has been offering mentoring and giving grants to Happy Grocers. They have also been connecting them to policy makers and VCs.