ON FARM TESTING TO MAKE SURE YOUR MILK IS SAFE — MEET LABBY
Our founder stories continue this week with Labby. We talked with CEO Julia Somerdin about their Massachusetts-based company.
Tell us about your Company
Labby is a dairy information and data company that provides fast, accurate and affordable raw milk testing solutions for dairy farms.
Using Labby’s optical device with built-in IoT connectivity, farmers can gain instant visibility on each cow’s milk quality and composition info on a daily basis, rather than receive the report once a month. It allows the farmer to identify the under-performed or sick cows to prevent bulk tank milk contamination and minimize milk production loss.
How did your company get started?
Ansh Das and I, the two founders, met at MIT 3 years ago. Ansh was a post-doc working and teaching a class at MIT Media Lab, while I was studying in the MIT Sloan/ESD program. We have worked about 2 years, 1 year together in the classroom project and another together through Labby since the formation of the startup.
Describe your current stage
We are actively working on a few pilot projects with local farms and dairy co-ops, including Dairy Farmers of America on data analytics and modeling.
In the next 6 months, we will focus in three areas
- Selecting and setting up farms for pilots.
- Collecting and analyzing data — including both quality and quantity.
- Further reducing the cost of the hardware.
A potential customer can sign up for the pilot or purchase the product by directly sending us an email to hello@labbyinc.com.
What made you interested in joining the DFA Accelerator?
We wanted to benefit from the industrial expertise and knowledge.
DFA has extensive expertise in supply chain operations, regulatory guidance, and long trust relationships with the farmers in its co-op and we want to get access to those relationships.
We are also interested in talking with end customers and distribution channels, while connecting with the farmers and establishing pilot projects with the help of DFA.
Working with co-ops like DFA will help us connect with other players in the ecosystem to build up brand awareness and set up meaningful partnerships.
What are your goals in being part of this program?
We want to create pilot projects with DFA member farms and grow into a strong and mindful leader through learning and sharing within this community.
What has been your biggest takeaway or benefit from the program so far?
A great community from both the staff and the startup founders. I feel supported and energized every day while I’m in Kansas City.
What has been the most exciting/fun/hilarious moment of the program so far?
The nightly, group dinner adventure. One night was near River Market and the other was in a Japanese Sushi restaurant. We had great fun bonding with each other.
What is your advice for entrepreneurs?
Be open-minded and be humble, but be yourself.
