Biochar is at the centre of a new initiative by Biochar Industrial Group (BIG), a climate technology company that is turning agricultural waste from food-processing factories into biochar and generating carbon removal credits. BIG has raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding to expand its Biochar-as-a-Service model across Sub-Saharan Africa.
This funding round, led by BREEGA and supported by The Catalyst Fund and non-dilutive contributions from the Mulago Foundation, will help BIG strengthen partnerships with food-processing companies and deploy more of its pyrolysis technology across Sub-Saharan Africa.
Food processing generates a lot of waste, including nut shells, maize cobs, husks, and stalks. Instead of letting this biomass rot away or paying to get rid of it, a company called BIG is taking an innovative approach by installing pyrolysis equipment right at the factories.
So, what is pyrolysis? It’s a process that heats organic materials to over 600°C in an environment with very little oxygen. This method transforms the biomass into biochar, a type of stable carbon that can stay in the soil for hundreds or even thousands of years.
By using pyrolysis, BIG turns what was once seen as waste into two valuable products. The first is the biochar itself, which can be reused in agriculture as a soil enhancer. The second is carbon removal credits, financial certificates that companies can buy to offset their carbon emissions. In a world increasingly focused on sustainability, these credits represent both an environmental benefit and a new income stream for food factories.
BIG claims that using its biochar can lead to significant improvements in crop yields. In controlled field trials, they reported increases of up to 50%. While these results are promising, it’s important to remember that they come from specific tests rather than widespread agricultural practices.
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One key advantage of BIG’s approach is its decentralisation. Instead of building large facilities that require the transportation of bulky agricultural waste across long distances, BIG installs its pyrolysis units directly within the food-processing plants. This not only cuts down on logistics costs but also allows factories to directly benefit from the process, transforming waste into a potential money-maker.
BIG’s pitch to agribusinesses is clear: instead of just adopting a climate-friendly technology, factories can turn what they once considered useless material into a source of income. By addressing waste and generating revenue simultaneously, BIG is offering a compelling solution to a significant problem in food production.
Biochar, a founding team coming from industrial agriculture
BIG was founded by Ikenna Nzewi, Uzoma Ayogu, and Isaiah Udotong, who all worked together at Releaf Earth, an agro-processing company supported by Y Combinator. Their journey in the agriculture world spans nearly a decade and includes overseeing four factories, designing food-processing equipment, and managing complex supply chains that involve thousands of small farmers.
Now, they are bringing that vast expertise to the field of carbon removal. Ikenna Nzewi, the CEO of BIG, explains, “Africa has natural advantages to lead the most scalable and cost-effective biomass-based carbon removal globally.” This means that Africa is uniquely positioned to effectively harness biomass for carbon capture in a way that other regions cannot.
BIG is stepping into a carbon-removal market that is gaining traction among businesses eager to find solutions for absorbing carbon from the atmosphere instead of just focusing on cutting down future emissions.
For food processors in Africa, BIG offers a more tangible solution: they help businesses take waste that can often be a financial burden and turn it into a valuable product. By processing local waste, these businesses can not only contribute to a healthier planet but also create a new source of revenue.
In short, BIG is transforming the environmental challenge of waste into an opportunity for both business growth and climate action.
Also read: African ClimateTech funding hits $1.5bn, overtakes fintech for the first time
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