Fact Check: Bangalore agri startup falsely linked to ongoing farmers protest
A set of 4 images of a warehouse filled with vegetables and fruits on blue pushcarts are viral on social media. Users claim that this market was started by farmers in Bangalore. Many social media users are linking this market to the ongoing farmers' protest.
By Newsmeter Network Published on 18 Dec 2020 5:51 AM GMT
Hyderabad: A set of 4 images of a warehouse filled with vegetables and fruits on blue pushcarts are viral on social media. Users claim that this market was started by farmers in Bangalore. Many social media users are linking this market to the ongoing farmers' protest.
"The farmers of Karnataka have prepared their own super market by taking place in Bengaluru city. But this should be done by farmers in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana as well (sic)," read the message.
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Fact Check:
NewsMeter found that the claim of a vegetable market being set-up during farmers' protest is false. These images are from a website of a Bengaluru-based agricultural start-up `Humus'.
We performed a Google search using the word HUMUS which was noticed on one banner in the viral images and found the same image on a website called HUMUS.
HUMUS is an agricultural start-up in Bangalore that was founded in 2019 by Manjunath TN and Shilpa Gopalaih. It is an "initiative aimed at solving the Indian agricultural supply chain" and is "Bengaluru's first "Fair Price" Vegetable and Fruits supermarket".
A Facebook link on the website led us to find similar images to the viral ones. The viral photo was added to the Cover Photo section of the organization.
The startup has been mentioned in several reports by media organizations. According to the New Indian Express, the Bengaluru-based startup supplies items to citizens at 20 percent lower cost and that the firm comprises a team of 30 people.
Evidently, it is clear that images from a Bangalore startup are being shared as an initiative by farmers. It is falsely linked to the ongoing protests.
