How RAW Pressery is helping the environment and uplifting farmers at the same time

Apart from being India’s leading cold pressed juice company, RAW Pressery also holds the distinction of being the country’s ‘largest clean label company’ which is committed to being an environmentally sustainable and ecologically ethical brand.

The company has been successful in figuring out a model wherein they are not only avoid harming the environment when it comes to the disposal of the leftover pulp used to make their juices, but have also devised a way to benefit farmers at the same time.

As it is the process of making pressed juices reduce wastage to the minimum by utilising the maximum potential of the particular fruit and vegetable. That being said, there was still the question of what the company would do with leftover pulp.

“Every month we source over 250,000 kgs of India’s best fruits and vegetables directly from Indian farms and plantations and post-juicing, we are left with a rich insoluble by-product. It would be incorrect to call this ‘waste’ since this secondary raw material is nutrient-rich (for soil purposes) and maintained bacteria-free at low temperatures. In order to manage 100% of our food waste and by-products responsibly, we offer this back to local farmers around our Panvel facility as a biologically reprocessed compost. Since it is nutrient-rich it is also used as manure or cattle fodder,” reveals Anuj Rakyan, founder and managing director, Rakyan Beverages which owns RAW Pressery.

Unlike most other beverages which are made from concentrates and additives (added sugar, flavours etc.), cold-pressed juices are made from only natural produce. This implies that the quality of ‘food-waste’ is very rich for the compost and manuring. Given that farmers in India have a hard time finding high-quality compost at affordable prices, this initiative by RAW Pressery is a much-needed relief for them.

The company is also strictly against dumping any leftover material into landfills which causes hazardous air and water pollution.

The reason for this, Rakyan states is because RAW Pressery believes in ecological karma. “To get the best from the earth, we must give back to the earth – hence we ensure that we close the natural loop and give back this material to the farmers,” he adds.

That’s not all. RAW Pressery is planning on taking their promise of being an environment-friendly brand ahead by making edible items out of its fruits and vegetable waste.

“We generate around 100 tonnes of fruit and vegetable waste per month. Till now, we would find sustainable uses for the waste.
Additionally, now we are also planning to process it to make products like chips etc," says Rakyan.

Not only have they started invested into R&D, but a team is also in place to figure out what kind of food products can be made out of the waste. For example, the team has already tried making chips out of beetroot and carrot residue that become leftover by-products once the juices are extracted.

At the moment, RAW Pressery is present across eight cities in the country and follows a business model which is a mix of monthly subscription and online sales. At present it claims to have around 25,000 subscribed consumers and sells around 1 lakh bottles every month which are priced between Rs 80-250.