Business tycoon Anand Mahindra on Monday expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his continued support of the tribal farmers in Araku Valley, a city in Andhra Pradesh. These farmers have been growing coffee using regenerative agricultural practices, which has now made their coffee globally renowned as one of the finest in the world.

His post came after PM Modi, in his Mann ki Baat episode, mentioned that people should taste the coffee from Araku in Andhra as it is fabulous.

Mahindra, who is also the Chairman of the Board at Naandi Foundation highlighted the 25-year journey that Naandi Foundation, under the guidance of N. Chandrababu Naidu and the late Dr. Reddy, has undertaken to transform the lives of tribal farmers. Naidu, the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, encouraged the foundation to start initiatives that would help tribal farmers grow high-quality coffee, thereby improving their economic status.

"A huge ‘thank you’ to PM @narendramodi@ for repeatedly supporting the hard work of the tribal farmers who grow Coffee in the Araku Valley—using regenerative agricultural practices. It is now a globally renowned brand & acknowledged as one of the world’s finest coffees. As Board Chairman, I am keenly aware of the 25 year journey undertaken by   @naandi_india  the at the behest of  @ncbn  who had persisted with late Dr Reddy to start Naandi and transform the lives of Tribal farmers by encouraging them to grow high-quality coffee," Anand Mahindra wrote on X.

The vision of Manoj Kumar, CEO of Naandi Foundation, and his team were instrumental in turning Araku coffee into a global brand. Their dedication and hard work led to the opening of the first Araku Coffee outlet in the Marais district of Paris. The café quickly became a popular spot, with Parisians often lining up to get their daily cup of Araku coffee, he revealed.

Encouraged by the success of the first outlet, Mahindra announced that a second café would soon open near the Pantheon in Paris. In addition to the Paris outlets, Araku Coffee also has outlets in Bengaluru and Mumbai, making the coffee accessible to a wider audience in India.

"We were enthused by the vision of @manoj_naandi & his team to make the coffee a global brand & we opened the 1st outlet of  @arakucoffeein  in the Marais district in Paris. Today, lines stretch outside the store of Parisians waiting to get their daily cuppa of Araku. (Pics posted in the thread) And I’m delighted to announce that we’ll shortly be opening the second Cafe in Paris near the Pantheon. In addition, of course, we have outlets in Bengaluru & Mumbai," Mahindra wrote.

The impact of this initiative on the tribal farmers has been profound, he said in a post on X. According to Prime Minister Modi, over 300,000 tribals have been lifted out of poverty, and over 42,000 farmer families have become 'Lakhpatis,' earning a profit of Rs 100,000 per season from coffee farming. This economic boost has significantly improved their standard of living and provided them with more opportunities.

In addition to the economic benefits, the tribal farmers have made significant contributions to the environment. They have planted 45 million trees so far, with plans to plant another 6 million trees this monsoon season. This reforestation effort is a testament to the sustainable and regenerative agricultural practices promoted by Naandi Foundation.

"As the PM said, so far over 300,000 tribals are out of poverty and over 42,000 farmer families have become Lakhpatis - earning Rs 100,000 profit per season from coffee.  The best story is the fact that these tribal families also planted 45 million trees so far & this monsoon another 6 million more will be planted.
This is the true ‘Return on Equity’ from building a Global Social Enterprise brand out of India," he said.

Mahindra also pointed out that the success of Araku Coffee is a prime example of 'Return on Equity' from building a global social enterprise brand out of India. The initiative has not only provided economic benefits to the tribal farmers but also contributed to environmental sustainability.