Urban Harvest is making headlines for three major reasons: a viral customer complaint, a large funding round, and its recent acquisitions. Here are all the key details in simple, easy-to-understand English.
Viral “Nail Polish” Pomegranate Incident
Urban Harvest recently came under public attention after a customer shared a complaint about one of its products.
The customer was YouTuber Samdish Bhatia, who ordered a packet of peeled pomegranate through Swiggy Instamart.
According to Bhatia, the pomegranate smelled and tasted like nail polish as soon as he took the first spoonful. He immediately spat it out and later said the fruit had burnt his tongue. He claimed the burning sensation continued for the next two days.
He shared a photo of the Urban Harvest product on Instagram, where the post quickly became popular and received more than 5,400 likes.
Many people reacted in the comments. Some users suggested that the smell could have been caused by yeast breaking down the fruit’s natural sugars because the pomegranate was no longer fresh. Others said they were worried about preservatives and adulterated fruits sold through online grocery platforms. One person even said they had become suspicious of an Urban Harvest papaya stored in their refrigerator.
Urban Harvest later responded to the issue through a statement given to Hindustan Times. The company said its product contains only fresh and authentic pomegranate arils and that it does not add anything that changes the fruit’s natural smell or taste.
The company also said it tried several times to contact Bhatia to understand the issue and resolve his complaint, but he did not respond.
Urban Harvest’s Series D Funding Round
Urban Harvest is also in the news for raising a major round of funding.
The company’s board is expected to approve a Series D funding round worth Rs 341.4 crore (about $35.9 million).
After this investment, Urban Harvest’s valuation is expected to reach around Rs 1,541 crore (about $162 million). This is almost double its previous valuation of Rs 780 crore, which was recorded in October 2023.
As part of the funding round, the company will issue 42,013 Series D compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS) at an issue price of Rs 81,260 per share.
A total of 58 investors are participating in this round.
The investment is being led by Info Edge, which will invest Rs 30 crore. Other major investors include:
- Sandeep Kapadia – Rs 27 crore
- J & A Partners – Rs 25 crore
- Renu Sehgal Trust – Rs 20.01 crore
- Lc Nueva Advisors – Rs 20.01 crore
- Saburi Projects LLP – Rs 15 crore
- Madhuri Madhusudan Kela – Rs 13.09 crore
- Viral Amal Parikh – Rs 11.56 crore
The Gauri Khan Family Trust and the family office of Mankind Pharma are also participating in the funding round.
Once the shares are allotted, Info Edge will own 18.83% of Urban Harvest, making it the company’s largest institutional shareholder.
Urban Harvest plans to use the new funds to expand its business. The company wants to increase the number of its mega warehouses from five to ten, strengthen its presence in cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Jaipur, and spend more on marketing and general business operations.
Strategic Acquisitions
Urban Harvest is also expanding by acquiring other businesses.
The company recently acquired the premium gourmet food brand Cocosutra in an all-cash deal worth Rs 2.5 crore.
Urban Harvest expects to complete the integration of Cocosutra within two months. Since the acquisition, the brand’s business has already grown three times. The company believes Cocosutra can generate more than Rs 100 crore in revenue over the next 24 months.
Urban Harvest is also reportedly in advanced discussions to acquire the Hyderabad operations of fresh-produce retail chain Namdhari’s.
According to industry sources, the transition may have already taken place privately. However, neither Urban Harvest (Organicut Fresh) nor Namdhari’s has officially confirmed the reports, and both companies have declined to comment on the matter.