Synthetic fertilizer is a modern agricultural breakthrough that has played a crucial role in feeding billions of people worldwide. However, it comes with significant environmental costs. Runoff from synthetic fertilizers used in farming has created dead zones in oceans globally—areas where oxygen levels drop so low that marine life struggles to survive in what are normally vibrant coastal ecosystems.
Completely eliminating synthetic fertilizers is a daunting challenge, but one innovative startup believes its bacterial solution can replace up to half of synthetic fertilizer use, while also reducing costs. NetZeroNitrogen has developed a collection of bacterial strains that are applied directly to seeds, enabling plants to derive nitrogen from the atmosphere naturally, instead of relying on chemical fertilizers.
“This is a precision sniper approach,” said Justin Hughes, co-founder and CEO of NetZeroNitrogen. “Unlike traditional fertilizer application, where nutrients are spread broadly across a field in a shotgun approach hoping to hit the target, our bacteria work specifically with the plant from the start.”
Recently, NetZeroNitrogen secured $6.6 million in seed funding led by World Fund and Azolla Ventures, a milestone that underscores growing investor interest in sustainable agriculture technologies.
The bacteria engineered by NetZeroNitrogen are the result of over a decade of research led by Gary Devine, who has focused on naturally occurring nitrogen-fixing strains. Importantly, these bacteria are not genetically modified. Hughes emphasized, “We’re not motivated by any moral stance on genetic modification. Rather, avoiding GMOs simplifies regulatory approval and also opens the door to organic markets.” The bacteria live symbiotically with the plant, dying along with it once the plant’s lifecycle ends.
NetZeroNitrogen plans to introduce its first product for rice, a crop well-suited to the bacteria because rice seeds are soaked in water before planting—a perfect opportunity to introduce the bacterial treatment. “You just mix the bacteria in at that point, and you’re done,” Hughes explained.
By using large fermentation tanks to cultivate these bacterial strains, the company can produce its biological fertilizer amendments more cheaply than the traditional synthetic varieties. Hughes points out that biomanufacturing costs are significantly lower than the Haber-Bosch process, the standard industrial method used to produce synthetic nitrogen fertilizers, especially at scale.
The company aims to offer its bacterial fertilizer to farmers at least $50 less per hectare than the cost of synthetic fertilizers. In regions such as Southeast Asia, this could translate to a 30 to 40 percent discount.
While synthetic fertilizers will not disappear overnight, NetZeroNitrogen offers a promising, efficient alternative that could substantially reduce reliance on chemicals in farming. Hughes admits, “We can’t solve 100 percent of the problem yet, but for the portion we can address, the efficiency is effectively 100 percent.” This innovative approach could mark an important step toward more sustainable and environmentally friendly agriculture worldwide.