NutRE story: How one family made soil testing as easy as checking temperature

KOCHI: In a significant breakthrough for precision agriculture, a Thiruvananthapuram-based mother-son duo has developed NutRE, a portable agrometer that provides a comprehensive soil health profile in just two minutes.

Designed by biotechnologist Dr. Kavitha Santhosh and her son Arjun, an Industrial Production Engineering student, the device is already transforming how farmers approach land management.

Soil analysis at fingertips

The NutRE device operates with the simplicity of a medical thermometer. By inserting the device’s probes directly into the earth, farmers can bypass the traditional, time-consuming process of sending soil samples to distant laboratories.

• Portability: Weighing only 250 grams, the device is highly mobile.
• Connectivity: It syncs seamlessly with the NutRE app via Bluetooth.
• Precision: Certified by Kerala Agricultural University, the device boasts 90% accuracy.
• Actionable Insights: Beyond raw data, the app provides tailored crop suggestions and soil amendments based on the land's specific profile.

12 critical results in one scan

In a single two-minute session, NutRE detects a dozen essential characteristics required for optimal crop growth. This includes physical properties like pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), and Moisture, as well as a full nutrient workup:

• Primary Nutrients: Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium (NPK).
• Secondary Nutrients: Calcium, Magnesium, and Sulfur.
• Micronutrients: Iron, Copper, and Zinc.

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From Research to Reality

The inspiration for NutRE struck Dr. Kavitha during her tenure at a Thiruvananthapuram-based NGO. After witnessing farmers struggle with long delays in soil testing, she envisioned a tool that could offer an "instant diagnosis" for land health.

Supported by her husband, Dr. Santosh Mitra (a Principal Scientist at ICAR), and her son Arjun, the family established Biota Precision Agriculture Private Limited. Despite early experimental setbacks, the team successfully brought the device to market with technical assistance from the International Centre for Free and Open Source Software (ICFOSS) and a grant from the Kerala Startup Mission.

Market impact and future growth

Though it launched only three months ago, NutRE is seeing a surge in demand—particularly from agricultural hubs like Maharashtra and Karnataka.

Priced at ₹35,400, the device is currently manufactured at the company’s Karyavattom office. However, with demand scaling rapidly across India, industrial-scale production is slated to begin soon. By bridging the gap between high-tech lab analysis and boots-on-the-ground farming, NutRE is proving that the future of agriculture is immediate, digital, and accessible.