AME Foundation - India

What AME Foundation - India does

AME Foundation is an India-based non-profit charitable trust headquartered in Bangalore, with field operations in Dharwad (Karnataka), Trichy, and Dharmapuri (Tamil Nadu), serving small and marginal rainfed farmers across at least eight Indian states. Founded in 1982 as the AME Programme in the Netherlands and re-established as an independent Indian entity in 2002, the organization has spent three decades promoting ecological agriculture through Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture (LEISA) approaches, including System of Rice Intensification (SRI), Integrated Farming Systems (IFS), and biological crop management.

The foundation's offerings revolve around capacity-building methodologies and a knowledge-publishing platform. Its Farmer Field Schools (FFS) and Participatory Technology Development (PTD) are season-long participatory learning models in which farmers analyze crop ecosystems, run their own trials, and adopt context-specific practices. The LEISA India magazine, published since 1999 in 8 language editions and reaching roughly 23,000 readers, aggregates over 1,000 documented agroecological experiences from 700+ contributors and serves as the foundation's primary knowledge-dissemination channel. A Systematic Documentation service helps partner NGOs capture field-level learnings, and a 13-week hybrid Agroecology Course for Food Systems Transformation is scheduled to launch in January 2026.

The organization is grant-funded rather than commercially priced. Revenue flows through foundation grants, government partnerships (e.g., Department of Science and Technology's BIO-FARMS project), and international development partners (MISEREOR, Agroecology Fund, Deshpande Foundation, FAO, WWF, ILEIA, NABARD-supported partners). Beneficiary farmers engage through programs delivered in partnership with 138 NGO and development-organization partners across roughly 400 villages, with documented outcomes including 40% paddy yield gains under SRI, 82% higher groundnut net income under biological management, and 56% yield increases in VRI-2 groundnut via PTD. The 80G, FCRA, and IICA accreditations underpin its eligibility to receive domestic tax-advantaged donations and foreign contributions.

Name

AME Foundation - India

Legal name

AME Foundation

Website

https://amefound.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AME Foundation is a Bangalore-headquartered non-profit promoting ecological agriculture (LEISA, FFS, PTD, SRI) among small and marginal rainfed farmers across 8 Indian states, supported by international development grants, a multilingual LEISA India magazine, and a 138-partner NGO network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Agriculture Development

NAICS

Support Activities for Crop Production (11511)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Agriculture, Food Security & Nutrition Technical Assistance (BPADAEAG), Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI), Sustainable Agriculture, Food Systems & Land Management (BPADALAG), Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices (EDAOAOAO)

Keywords

• Sustainable agriculture programs
• Agroecology training services
• Farmer field schools
• Rainfed farming support
• Agricultural knowledge dissemination

Headquarters

HQ city

Bangalore

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Grants and Donations: AME Foundation operates as a non-profit organization (80 G Certified, FCRA Certified, IICA Accredited), funded primarily through grants from international development organizations, government partnerships, and donations. Revenue supports sustainable agriculture programs for smallholder farmers in rainfed areas.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AME Foundation promotes sustainable agriculture among small and marginal rainfed farmers through Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture (LEISA) approaches, Farmer Field Schools (FFS), and Participatory Technology Development (PTD). The organization operates as a non-profit charitable trust headquartered in Bangalore, with offices in Dharwad and Tiruchi/Dharmapuri, and disseminates knowledge through the multilingual LEISA India magazine and capacity-building programs across 400 villages.

Product overview

AME Foundation operates as a non-profit organization offering a portfolio of knowledge-sharing and capacity-building products and programs. The core offerings include LEISA India Magazine (a multi-language publication platform for agroecological knowledge sharing since 1999), Systematic Documentation Services (helping NGOs document field experiences), and educational programs like Farmer Field Schools (FFS) and Participatory Technology Development (PTD). These products and services are designed to strengthen sustainable small farmer livelihoods through ecological agriculture promotion, with the LEISA India magazine serving as the primary knowledge dissemination channel across 8 language editions reaching 23,000 readers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LEISA India: A knowledge sharing magazine on agroecological experiences published by AME Foundation since 1999.

Quantifiable outcome

• 82% increase in groundnut net income, 42% in ragi, 71% in samai through LEISA practices
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Access AgriculturecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Collaboration with Access Agriculture, The Netherlands to develop 50 case examples documenting the impact of agricultural videos on farming communities across Karnataka, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Rajasthan. Partners provide handholding support for putting video learnings into practice.
• Rotary BangaloreminorGTM or Marketing PartnerService organization partnership for community development and rural initiatives.
• Tata HitachiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConstruction and mining equipment company partnership for agricultural development initiatives.
• FAOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFood and Agriculture Organization - UN agency collaboration for sustainable agriculture and food security initiatives.
• ILEIA (Institute for Agriculture and Ecology)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch institute collaborating on LEISA India magazine, documentation and communication programs, and knowledge sharing on agroecology since early 2000s.
• KstepsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner organization in knowledge dissemination and agricultural development network.
• IWMI (International Water Management Institute)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch institute partnership for urban agriculture platform initiatives and water management programs.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Digital Green: Technology-enabled non-profit that disseminates agricultural extension content to smallholder farmers via video, including in India. Overlaps with AME Foundation on the farmer-education mission and competes for the same donor and government attention.

Direct peers

• PRADAN: Indian non-profit promoting livelihood enhancement through agriculture and allied activities among rural poor. Comparable in operating model (community-led, India-focused) and smallholder farmer training approach.
• BAIF Development Research Foundation: Large Indian development non-profit working on sustainable agriculture, livestock, and rural livelihoods across multiple states. Comparable scale, mission, and smallholder farmer focus in India.
• Access Agriculture: Netherlands-based non-profit that produces and distributes agricultural training videos for smallholder farmers globally. AME Foundation is an active content and case-study partner; both share a community-led, agroecological knowledge-extension model targeting similar smallholder audiences.
• Navdanya: Indian non-profit promoting seed sovereignty, agroecology, and sustainable farming among smallholders. Direct domestic peer with an overlapping agroecological philosophy and Indian smallholder audience.
• ILEIA / Farming Matters: Dutch knowledge broker that has co-published LEISA India with AME Foundation since the early 2000s. Directly comparable as a curated agroecology knowledge platform serving smallholder farmers and development practitioners worldwide.
• Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR): Indian non-profit focused on watershed development and climate-resilient sustainable agriculture for rainfed farming communities. Directly comparable on rainfed India focus and community-led capacity building.

Regional players

• Action for Food Production (AFPRO): Indian non-profit focused on water security, sustainable agriculture, and rural livelihoods. Comparable mission and smallholder farmer-extension approach, with overlapping geographic footprint across Indian rainfed states.

Broad incumbents

• Heifer International: Global non-profit working with smallholder farmers on sustainable agriculture and livestock. Comparable as a large international NGO operating in India with similar agroecological and smallholder-resilience themes.
• One Acre Fund: Large international non-profit serving smallholder farmers with training, inputs, and market access across East and Southern Africa. Comparable mission and smallholder farmer-extension model, though operating at greater geographic scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ame-foundation---india

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about AME Foundation - India