$30m funding to use farmland for carbon capture

Following a successful initial funding round, a new climate tech startup could offer a biological boost to the urgent need to expand carbon capture, use and storage (CCUS) infrastructure. 

US-based Andes has a unique offer to the world. Using microorganisms, it essentially transforms land into giant carbon sinks, expanding on the natural capture capabilities of soil. The result is a significant reduction in agricultural emissions entering the atmosphere, removal of existing carbon pollution, and improvements to farm produce. 

The company has already partnered with growers in North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. focusing on 25,000 acres of land, those who used this technology reported tangible benefits to the plants they cultivate, with no disruption to their practices. In total, more than 50,000 tonnes of CO2 was extracted from the atmosphere by this relatively limited deployment.

This could be welcome news for organisations such as the European Environment Agency, which last year sounded alarms over evidence that organic soil on the continent was releasing carbon, threatening its ability to cultivate crops, and in turn the region’s food supply chain and security. IN 2019, for example, net emissions from soil across all EU members states was 64megatonnes – the equivalent to around half of all aviation output from the bloc each year. 

With investment now reaching some $38m, $30m of which has just been announced, Andes believes it is ready to work with and offer its carbon removal credits to organisations of all sizes. The result of this rapid expansion could make a significant contribution to the task of removing carbon from the air. A mammoth undertaking, the National Academy of Sciences estimates around 10 gigatonnes of the greenhouse gas needs to be extracted for the planet to have a chance at limiting warming to 1.5C – the maximum agreed by international treaty. 

‘Catastrophic climate disasters that jeopardize human life and natural resources are inevitable without high-permanence, scalable carbon sequestration. Andes is proud to transform the carbon dioxide removal industry with the tools that are required for a brighter, livable future for all,’ said Gonzalo Fuenzalida, CEO and co-founder of Andes. ‘The completion of our Series A marks another milestone on our timeline of accelerated growth as the first company to provide organizations with high volume, long-lasting carbon removal solutions at a low price point.’ 

Helping the company grow, Andes has already been chosen as one of 15 startups to engage with the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Accelerator 3.0 scheme. This is designed to speed up development and launch of innovations aimed at addressing climate change. Meanwhile, financial backing in this latest investment cycle has come from a range of companies, including Yamaha Motor Ventures, a name with clear ties to products that contribute towards emissions. If nothing else, this shows an increasingly understanding among some polluters that they must play leading roles in the necessary environmental recovery. 

Learn more about why soil degradation is such a concern in Europe here.