Pivot Bio launches the first-ever on-seed nitrogen

Pivot Bio launched an entirely new class of products that integrates nitrogen seamlessly with the seed during planting. The first-ever product to deliver nitrogen-producing microbes on the seed for crops like corn, sorghum, and spring wheat, PROVEN^® 40 On-Seed (OS) and RETURN^® On-Seed provide growers with nitrogen that is better for their farms and the environment. The company also announced its 2022 year-end results today. Pivot Bio exceeded $50 million in revenue and sold more than 3 million crop acres, growing three-fold year-over-year.

″Pivot Bio PROVEN^® 40 On-Seed and RETURN^® On-Seed support growers to be more resilient and offer them more control while expanding agriculture’s positive impact on the world with better nitrogen,″ said Karsten Temme, Ph.D., Pivot Bio co-founder and CEO. ″This class of products makes our nitrogen-producing microbes available to every grower across the United States. There’s no special equipment required, and growers no longer must rely solely on a third-party to apply the nitrogen their crops need.″

The only on-seed application of microbial nitrogen on the market, PROVEN^® 40 OS and RETURN^® OS enhances the crops’ potential all season long by providing an efficient and dependable 24/7 nitrogen source with no loss to leaching, denitrification, or volatilization. Unlike synthetic nitrogen, Pivot Bio’s microbes give growers confidence that this source of nitrogen reaches the crop. When growers use synthetic nitrogen, they must overapply to compensate for the 40-60% that never reaches the crop. Pivot Bio’s microbes adhere to the root of the plant without any waste, providing nitrogen throughout the critical growing cycle.

Pivot Bio recently completed the broadest U.S. in-plant nitrogen study conducted in a single growing season, measuring and verifying product performance across more than 2,100 on-farm fields, encompassing 1.3 million acres. To date, side-by-side comparisons show that the plants where Pivot Bio microbes were used have 14% more nitrogen in the plant and 12% more plant biomass compared to untreated plants, demonstrating the nitrogen efficacy of Pivot Bio’s products. More nitrogen in the plant leads to healthier and more resilient crops.

″Based on the demand we’ve experienced in prior years and the intense interest in our product as we open 2023 sales, it is clear to us that growers are looking for a dependable source of nitrogen,″ said Temme. ″We have provided a microbe-based nitrogen that is produced in the U.S. This nitrogen empowers growers to apply it at the time of planting, so they are in control in a profession where so many variables are beyond their control.″

Shoring up the supply chain and offering a sustainable source of nitrogen are key priorities at Pivot Bio. From global fertilizer shortages to a delayed planting season impacting this year’s crop performance, growers can look to Pivot Bio for something more reliable. Being 100% made in America gives growers more stability and is less vulnerable to global supply chain disruptions and volatile markets.  About one gallon of PROVEN^® 40 OS or RETURN^® OS can replace the equivalent of a train car full of anhydrous ammonia fertilizer, in contrast to the high-energy, fuel intensive production and supply chains required for synthetic nitrogen.

Annually, 140 million tons of synthetic nitrogen is manufactured using about 2% of the world’s energy. Synthetic nitrogen is credited for feeding about 3.5 billion people, yet it’s an inefficient delivery of nutrition to the crop. About half of what’s produced is lost to the environment, emitting about one trillion pounds of CO₂ each year, impacting air quality.

 ″Synthetic nitrogen has supported life for one hundred years, and now is the time to evolve into the next generation of crop nutrition. Farmers need better nitrogen to help restore the planet and one that is more efficient,″ said Temme. ″Pivot Bio’s nitrogen has the potential to power the next century of agriculture and support generations to come.″