Young entrepreneur turns horticulture challenges into growing cold-chain enterprise in Kashmir

South Coast CA Cold Store creates 85 jobs as Rouhan Rafiq builds integrated storage, warehousing and logistics business

Srinagar: In just three years, young entrepreneur Rouhan Rafiq has turned an idea aimed at addressing some of Kashmir’s most persistent post-harvest challenges into a growing enterprise focused on cold storage, warehousing and agricultural logistics.

As the Founder and CEO of South Coast CA Cold Store, Rafiq has been building an agri-supply-chain business designed to help fruit growers preserve the quality and value of their produce after harvest, while improving access to markets beyond the traditional trading network.

The enterprise, which began in 2022, has so far created employment for 85 people, reflecting the potential of value-added infrastructure and agricultural services to generate jobs alongside supporting the region’s core horticulture economy.

Like many other cold stores established at places like Lassipora and Shopian in South Kashmir by very enterprising young people, South Coast CA Cold Store provides controlled-atmosphere (CA) storage, pre-cooling, grading and sorting, warehousing and logistics services, with a particular focus on Kashmir’s major horticultural crops, including apples, cherries and plums.

Tackling the post-harvest challenge

Kashmir’s horticulture sector has long faced challenges beyond production itself. Fruit growers can lose a significant part of the value of their produce because of inadequate post-harvest handling, limited storage capacity, delays in transportation and difficulties in maintaining quality between harvest and final sale.

For a region whose economy is heavily dependent on horticulture, strengthening this part of the value chain is increasingly important.

Rafiq’s business model seeks to address this gap by bringing several stages of post-harvest management together under one ecosyste – from pre-cooling and scientific storage to grading, sorting, warehousing and movement of produce.

Controlled-atmosphere storage, in particular, allows suitable fruit varieties to be stored under carefully managed temperature, humidity and atmospheric conditions, helping extend their marketable life and allowing growers and traders greater flexibility in deciding when to release produce into the market.

The objective, according to the enterprise, is not merely to provide storage space but to improve the overall handling and movement of horticultural produce.

From an idea to an expanding enterprise

Rafiq began the venture in 2022 with a vision of contributing to the development of Kashmir’s horticulture infrastructure. Over the following three years, that vision has evolved into a business employing 85 people and operating across multiple components of the agricultural supply chain.

The journey reflects a broader shift in Kashmir’s entrepreneurial landscape, where a growing number of young entrepreneurs are attempting to build businesses around sectors in which the region already possesses a strong comparative advantage.

Rather than focusing exclusively on primary production, enterprises such as South Coast are positioning themselves around the infrastructure, technology and services required to make agricultural production more commercially viable.

For Kashmir’s fruit growers, the availability of modern post-harvest infrastructure can potentially help reduce distress sales, maintain quality for longer periods and improve the ability to target markets according to demand.

Building a more integrated supply chain

Rafiq’s stated ambition extends beyond cold storage. The enterprise is seeking to develop an integrated agricultural supply-chain ecosystem combining storage infrastructure with logistics and other post-harvest services.

The approach is particularly relevant to Kashmir’s apple industry, which produces substantial volumes during a concentrated harvest season. Efficient storage and transportation can help spread the availability of produce over a longer period and reduce pressure on growers and traders to sell immediately after harvest.

Similarly, better grading and sorting can help segregate produce according to quality and market requirements, potentially enabling growers and aggregators to target different segments of the domestic and international market.

The development of such infrastructure also has implications beyond individual growers. A stronger cold chain can create demand for skilled and semi-skilled workers in areas ranging from plant operations and handling to grading, packaging, warehousing, transportation and supply-chain management.

Focus on employment and local value creation

The creation of 85 jobs in three years is among the most significant outcomes of Rafiq’s entrepreneurial journey.

In a region where the need for private-sector employment opportunities remains high, agriculture-linked enterprises can offer an avenue for generating jobs while simultaneously addressing structural weaknesses in an important economic sector.

The model also demonstrates how investment in horticulture need not be confined to orchards and farm-level production. Storage, processing, packaging, logistics, marketing and other post-harvest activities represent a substantial part of the value chain and can provide opportunities for new businesses and employment.

Rafiq believes Kashmir’s agricultural strengths can provide the foundation for enterprises capable of competing beyond the local market.

> “We don’t just store produce; we preserve the hard work of our farmers and deliver freshness to the world,” Rafiq said.

Ambition to build a global agri-storage brand

With continued investment in cold-chain infrastructure, warehousing and logistics, Rafiq aims to develop South Coast into a recognised name in agri-storage and supply-chain solutions.

The larger ambition is to contribute to a horticulture ecosystem in which farmers are able to preserve their produce for longer, maintain quality through scientific post-harvest handling and reach markets with greater efficiency.

For Kashmir, where horticulture remains one of the principal pillars of the rural economy, the emergence of such enterprises could become increasingly important as growers face changing consumer preferences, expanding market opportunities, rising logistics costs and growing competition from other fruit-producing regions.

As Kashmir seeks to modernise its horticulture sector, businesses operating in the post-harvest and supply-chain space could play an increasingly important role in determining how much of the value generated by the region’s fruit production ultimately reaches growers and the wider local economy.