May 6, 2020

By Lynda Kiernan

Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Temasek have co-led a $100 million Series C for Pivot Bio – an agtech startup dedicated to developing more sustainable, effective, and safer replacements for synthetic nitrogen fertilizers.

Another significant contributor to the round was return investor DCVC, who led the company’s Series A and Series B rounds. Also joining the round were Prelude Ventures; Spruce Capital Partners; Codon Capital; Bunge Ventures; Continental Grain Company; Tekfen Ventures; Pavilion Capital; and individual investors Alan Cohen, and Roger Underwood.

Founded in California by Karsten Temme and Alvin Tamsir, Pivot Bio uses its unparalleled understanding of the crop microbiome to create cleaner nitrogen solutions that can decrease greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce water and energy usage compared to the $65 billion global synthetic nitrogen fertilizer market.

“Pivot Bio’s microbial nitrogen fertilizers are revolutionizing how farmers apply nitrogen to their crops, and we’re excited to continue our investment to support this important mission,” said Carmichael Roberts, Breakthrough Energy Ventures. “The company is leading the charge on truly sustainable farming techniques, and we’re confident that they’ll continue to innovate their product offerings to solve this critical climate and societal challenge.”

Through its work, Pivot Bio is targeting the biggest source of greenhouse gases on Earth, the nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide released through the use of chemical fertilizers.

The company’s debut product for corn Pivot Bio PROVEN™ is applied in-furrow at the point of planting. These nitrogen-producing microbes attach to the roots of the plant, forming a symbiotic relationship with the corn plant, continually producing and delivering nitrogen throughout the season, with peak nitrogen production during critical growth stages, while feeding off the exudates of the plant, according to the company’s website. 

These microbes, with the ability to produce nitrogen, have always been present in the soil, but years of synthetic nitrogen use has “silenced” this natural ability. Pivot Bio has re-discovered these microbes and has pioneered a method to “re-awaken” their natural ability, enabling them to “spoon feed” nitrogen to plants on a daily basis.

The adoption of Pivot Bio’s technology has the potential to shrink farmers’ use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer by at least 100 million metric tons over the next 10 years – resulting in improved and more consistent yields typically 5.8 bushels per acre better than field using synthetic fertilizer, and the removal of the equivalent of one gigaton of carbon dioxide from the environment, according to the company, which states that this action would equal taking 216 million cars off the road. It would also save $4.1 billion in water purification costs by reducing water-borne nitrates, and would reduce the dead zones found in our oceans. 

“Growers and our planet deserve a better fertilizer – one that balances on-farm economics with the farmer’s commitment to leave the land better for the next generation, and Pivot Bio’s technology helps them do just that,” said Karsten Temme, Ph.D., CEO and co-founder, Pivot Bio.

Now in its second year of commercialization, Pivot Bio’s PROVEN™ technology is used on hundreds of thousands of corn acres across the U.S. and has once again sold out. With the capital from this round, which brings total funding to-date to $186 million, the company plans to accelerate the scaling of its first-to-market microbial technology and to rapidly expand internationally. 

“The strong backing by our Series C investors enables Pivot Bio to redefine the future of fertilizer and provide the world’s farmers with a new nitrogen source. Based on remarkable demand, we expect to ramp up from our large current footprint to millions of additional acres in the next growing season,” said Temme.

The company recently launched Pivot Bio RETURN™, its first product for U.S. wheat growers through an early-adopter program, and soon will see its Pivot Bio PROVEN™ clean nitrogen for corn available in Argentina. Additionally, through IN10T’s FarmerTrials, Pivot Bio will launch Intent to Pivot – on-farm corn trials for Canadian growers. 

“Farmer acceptance of our technology and support of our vision is far beyond our expectations,” said Temme. “They understand the economics and efficiencies our product offers – more consistent yields, 100 percent nitrogen efficiency with the crop, and a lighter environmental footprint. It’s a triple bottom line for them and our planet.”

Not only does Pivot Bio deliver results both for farmers and the environment through its technology, but the production methods used to make its products use significantly less energy compared to the production of traditional synthetic fertilizer, eliminating 99.5 percent of the greenhouse gasses during manufacturing, and transporting the finished product via shipping containers.

Through its novel business model, local agronomists employ a mobile app to order and schedule on-demand delivery to farmers, eliminating huge infrastructure requirements such as factories, pipelines, barges, storage, and brick-and-mortar stores.

“Pivot Bio is addressing one of the most difficult challenges facing agriculture in the 21st century – reducing dependence on damaging synthetic fertilizer while increasing crop yields and creating better outcomes for farmers,” said Matt Ocko, managing partner, DCVC.

“DCVC led Pivot Bio’s early rounds and remains a major backer because we believe the company will truly transform global agricultural practices. We’re pleased the company continues to bring its microbial nitrogen technology to new crops and new locations, across America and around the world.”

– Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to the GAI News and Agtech Intel platforms. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration, please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.com.