Pivot Bio has released the results of its 2022 program for testing the replacement of synthetic on-farm nitrogen fertilizer using one of its nitrogen-fixing products.

In the 2022 pilot trial, the nitrogen source was provided by Pivot Bio’s microbial ProveN40 product. The company said that on average, the growers replaced 36 pounds of synthetic fertilizer per acre and maintained yield.

Pilot participants signed affidavits verifying synthetic nitrogen was replaced on 725,000 acres, resulting in the avoidance of more than 80,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). That figure includes the company’s estimates of avoided manufacturing emissions and direct and indirect on-farm N2O volatilization.

Participants replaced nearly 12,000 tons of synthetic fertilizer, the largest reduction of its kind ever recorded, according to Pivot Bio.

Pivot Bio says that its microbes were used on more than 3 million acres of U.S. cropland in 2022, which represents a 300% year-over-year growth for the second year in a row. “If all 2022 Pivot Bio customers were part of the N-Ovator program and confirmed similar replacements, we would see an annual avoidance of over 400,000 MT of CO2e,” said the company.

Pivot Bio launched its first product in 2018, and ProveN40 in 2021. The company claims its current microbial nitrogen for corn can replace up to 20% of a grower’s average nitrogen needs with around 98% fewer emissions, while increasing farmers’ revenue and maintaining their yields.

The company says its 2023 N-Ovator program has expanded beyond the limited pilot and is now open to all Pivot Bio customers for the first time.

Read more about the work being done to quantity nitrogen fertilizer emissions in the March/April 2022 issue of our quarterly journal New AG International here.