Pivot Bio is a company that provides farmers and the world with better nitrogen for improved productivity and sustainability. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Pivot Bio CEO Chris Abbott to learn more about the company.
Chris Abbott’s Background
Abbott grew up in Minnesota, graduated from the University of Minnesota, and began his career on Wall Street working for one of the only sell-side research firms that covered the agriculture industry. And Abbott said:
“I worked as an investor and advisor to agriculture companies across real asset and agriculture technology companies, including large and small companies focused on nitrogen fertilizer and in-season nitrogen use efficiency.”
“Over the last several years, I have worked as a hands-on strategist and operator, as both an investor and board director for several agriculture tech companies. Most recently, I built and co-led Conti Ventures at Continental Grain Company (Conti), a privately-owned global investor, owner, and operator of companies with more than 200 years of history across the food and agribusiness spectrum.”
“I have been closely involved with Pivot Bio for years, both as an investor and board member, and so I am proud to now be leading a company that is delivering such valuable solutions to growers in the Midwest and, soon, across the globe.”
Primary Responsibilities
What are Abbott’s primary responsibilities at the company? Abbott added:
“A successful company starts with the team. Pivot Bio has one of the best teams in the industry because you have Karsten Temme and Alvin Tamsir as cofounders and visionaries. My role today, which is different from that of a founder, is to make sure we have the right team to scale for the future. The business has changed dramatically in the past five years and my job is to lead the team at Pivot Bio through its next stage of growth. I have spent a lot of time in my career helping to scale partnerships, working with big incumbents, grain businesses and CPG companies, as well as startups and challengers in the industry and various sub-sectors of the ag and food world to solve different challenges. Collaborating with like-minded partners is both valuable and necessary if we are going to solve the challenges around nitrogen and fertilizer more broadly.”
“Another key part of my job is instilling focus with everything the team is currently working on. It’s my job to make sure that our teams are equipped with the right vision, focus and decision support frameworks, whether those are financial frameworks, product performance milestones or requirements so that we are spending our time in the right areas. Again, this goes back to the power and success of having a good team. If you have a best-in-class team, the worst thing that can happen is they are distracted or not focusing enough of their valuable time on the core things that matter. Instilling focus and providing resources to accomplish those key milestones is very important.”
Favorite Memory
What has been your favorite memory working for the company so far? Abbott reflected:
“One of my favorite memories was meeting Karsten and the team for the first time in 2018. Within minutes of meeting the team, it was clear to me that this company was going to do something great, and this was the one to bet behind. Without even seeing the data, I knew we had to make an investment.”
“Another memory is my trip to Canada earlier this year, where I met a few of our best sales reps. It was so great to hear about their personal experiences with Pivot Bio and watch our team help educate, ideate, and discuss valuable feedback about how we can support and improve our work together. I really enjoyed seeing the dynamic and rapport that we have with our partners.”
Challenges Faced
What challenges has Abbott faced in building the company? Abbott acknowledged:
“I think my biggest challenge in this new role will be identifying things we should do differently and trying to implement that change over time. The company has experienced great success and growth the past five years, so we have built a lot of repetition and muscle memory. Yet, it is hard to predict the future, and we may need to do things differently over the next five years. I have no doubt that we will get to the right answer if we continue to work together as a team.”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Abbott explained:
“To understand Pivot Bio, you first have to understand that until now, synthetic fertilizer was the primary way farmers grew the food the world needs. That is why it is a $190 billion business. But it is bad for farmers and the planet.”
“Pivot Bio developed the first nitrogen-fixing microbes for cereal crops, creating a more reliable, predictable, and sustainable way to nourish crops. The technology enables microbes to convert atmospheric nitrogen and deliver it to crops, providing a source of nitrogen throughout the growing season. The company’s team of advanced scientists and researchers identified nitrogen-fixing microbes naturally present in the soil, enhanced their strengths, and rigorously tested their efficacy.”
“The results growers are getting is why we are the leading synthetic nitrogen replacement products on the market, including Pivot Bio RETURN and Pivot Bio PROVEN 40. This is further backed by independent research that proves our microbes are consistently and efficiently replacing up to 40 pounds per acre of synthetic nitrogen while maintaining and in some cases, improving yield. In summary, our products are:
1.) More reliable: Our products are highly efficient in the field with little waste, whereas only 40-60% of synthetic fertilizer ever reaches the crop, and the rest can leach, volatilize, or run off into the environment.
2.) More profitable: Additional revenue based on productivity and cost savings by not purchasing more than needed because synthetic nitrogen is unpredictable. We are also expanding our pilot that facilitates our growers receiving carbon credit revenue.
3.) More sustainable: Our manufacturing process produces 98% less emissions than synthetic fertilizer and uses 1,000 times less water. Our product does not run off into streams or cause climate pollution and is better for soil health.
4.) Safer: Farmers can reduce their exposure to dangers that come from handling synthetic fertilizer.
Evolution Of Pivot Bio’s Technology
How has the company’s technology evolved since launching? Abbott noted:
“Pivot Bio’s products are now used by farmers on over 5 million acres – an unprecedented rate of adoption for new crop nutrition technology. In 2023, we launched our products in an on-seed application for the first time. In fact, our PROVEN 40 OS and Pivot Bio RETURN OS are the only on-seed microbial nitrogen products for corn and small grains on the market. Previous versions of our products were applied as a liquid at planting using specialized equipment that only a minority of row crop farmers own. This on-seed version of the product is applied to the seeds before they are delivered to the farmer and then planted as normal with no practice change required.”
“Now, farmers can plant their seeds with about 20-25% of the crop’s nitrogen needs already in place. A one-gallon box of PROVEN 40 OS can replace the equivalent of a train car full of anhydrous ammonia fertilizer. By being easy to manufacture, transport, and apply, Pivot Bio’s on-seed nitrogen makes the product available to every U.S. farmer for the first time, while opening markets for the company in countries all over the world.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones? Abbott cited:
“For the past few years, the success growers achieve using our products has fueled our success. This year, we surpassed $100 million in revenue for the first time and launched our products in an on-seed application. We now have over a thousand reps – which is a true testament to our success in leveraging trusted channels and building relationships between reps and growers. Other significant company milestones include:
1.) In 2022, we launched our N-OVATOR pilot program that supports growers’ efforts to reduce their on-farm emissions by replacing their use of synthetic nitrogen. Participants of the program replaced synthetic nitrogen across 725,000 acres, avoiding more than 80,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
2.) We joined AIM for Climate to advance R&D in climate-smart agriculture technology, committing to invest at least $291 million in product development funding over four years to accelerate the adoption of climate-resilient microbial nitrogen fertilizers.
3.) We also produced the first nitrogen-producing microbes for agriculture in Brazil – the world’s third-largest producer of corn, and conducted the first field trials in Kenya in an effort to boost yield and food security despite the country’s limited access to nitrogen.”
Customer Success Stories
After asking Abbott about customer success stories, he highlighted:
“I have become close with several customers over the years and am very grateful for their trust and partnership in Pivot Bio products. I remember sitting down with a few of our grower partners a few years ago, many of whom were skeptical about our products because they had not enough time to fully experience their value. As a result, most of the questions we were getting then focused on the product and how it works.”
“Fast forward to this year, where conversations with the same growers have shifted to helping them understand how they should use fertilizer differently in the future because it is important for their farm operations. This shift is a point of validation for me because we are now at a point where these growers – initial skeptics that have put us through the wringer – are not looking to be sold on our product because they know we are onto something. Instead, they are looking to us to provide solutions that will allow them to think differently about fertilizer over the next five, 10, and 20 years.”
Funding/Revenue
After asking Abbott about the company’s funding and revenue information, he revealed:
“The company has raised $617 million, including a $430 million round in 2021 with backing from DCVC, Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Bunge Ltd.’s venture capital arm, Temasek Holdings Ltd., Rockefeller Capital Management, Generation Investment Management, Prelude Ventures, and Conti Ventures.”
“Our revenue grew more than 60% in FY2023, surpassing $100 million for the first time and achieving our fourth consecutive year of growth for revenue and acres. This result was enabled by 95%+ Net Revenue Retention (NRR) from our 2022 grower cohort and 190%+ NRR from our 2020 and 2021 cohorts. The opportunity ahead is enormous as we continue to gather market share in the $190 billion nitrogen market.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is the company pursuing? Abbott assessed:
“Pivot Bio started with nitrogen, so we are going to continue to focus on that and work to increase our value to disrupt the $190 billion industry. Over time, we may develop new products that may be tangentially related to nitrogen, such as other macronutrients or micronutrients. So, I believe our TAM is going to evolve over time based on the products that we have at our disposal and our partnerships.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Abbott affirmed:
“Our approach in going after the source of the problem is what helps Pivot Bio stand out. There are people who want to attack the use of fertilizer, but fertilizer is one of the best inventions in the modern world. What we are saying is that we need to think about the use of synthetic fertilizer differently because it is a product that is prone to leaching, volatilization, and other forms of economic and environmental waste. We cannot avoid the use of fertilizer, but we can think of the most sustainable way to create and use it.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future company goals? Abbott pointed out:
“We are focused on expanding as quickly as possible in the U.S. with the goal of reaching every U.S. corn acre while introducing products for a range of additional crops and expanding into priority international markets.”
Additional Thoughts
Any other topics to discuss? Abbott concluded:
“At Pivot Bio, we are solving one of agriculture’s biggest challenges – delivering nitrogen to plants without the negative impacts of synthetic fertilizer. But we cannot do it alone. Over the next five, 10, or 20 years, we have a great opportunity to change the amount of synthetic fertilizer that we use per unit of yield by 50% to 75%, especially in developed economies that are high yielding. With the help of our partners, we can work together to bring forward better solutions for growers to help improve their economic output per acre, improve their sustainability profile by reducing inputs, and develop more efficient tools for farming.”
