Farm to Fork – The pig man of India

In a country such as India, where people love non-vegetarian food and like to experiment with new cuisines, it is necessary to have a dedicated outlet for the same. The country has people doing great in fisheries, chicken, and other varieties of meat, but it still lacked a special space for pork. Realizing the need and demand for safe pork, DLG Farms was founded in 2008 to provide people with hygienic and fresh pork.

DLG Farms was founded by serial entrepreneur O K Sanjit who was an IT professional in the US. After working in Wall Street, New York City for Citibank, Merril Lynch, and Chase Manhattan Bank, he founded and successfully ran three IT companies in Silicon Valley, California. To do something transformative in his own country, he left behind his US life. He identified the opportunity in pig farming and converted a 100-acre barren land into a State of Art pig farm.

Through the adoption of international standards in pig farming, he soon became a leader of the segment. Its swine breeding technique is unique in India. Professionally and scientifically managed breeding system leads to the development of genetically improved Pigs. The company pioneers in pure line exotic breeds in India and the animals are from the USA and UK.

Speaking about his journey from Wall Street, to pig farming, O. K. Sanjit says, "Meat is an essential diet, therefore it is necessary to have easy availability of safe and healthy meat. I examined the opportunities and challenges to find pig rearing to be an economically viable idea. I focused on the weak areas, and prominent among them was the long growth period of the Indian breed of pigs.  We tried to improve the growth cycle through exotic breeds. Meanwhile, I faced challenges on the policy front, as the country still needs a good policy to promote farming."

Sanjit and his team utilize their IT background in maintaining a record of every pig and genetic process applied to them. The company conducts 3-way breeding using Large White, Landrace, and Duroc. The application of technology makes tracking easy. In India, this is the first instance when data science is being utilized to manage livestock through which each animal is traceable.

The company has tried its best to engage with farmers. It has devised a 3-way mechanism to engage with farmers. The first one is 'buy-back', wherein farmers buy piglets, raise them at their farm, and when they weigh around 120 kg, farmers can sell them back to the company.