Windfall Bio’s methane eating microbes – or mems – are spread over soil by growers. The microbes eat up methane in the soil and also capture nitrogen from the air to produce organic fertiliser for a double sustainability win.
The Amazon-backed company has announced these mems have received Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) certification for organic farming.
Calling it a critical step in establishing a market for its organic fertiliser product, the company says the certification affirms Windfall’s methane-derived microbial output – a component of its organic fertiliser – as a validated solution for its partners deploying its technology at commercial-scale to generate economic returns from organic fertiliser production and carbon credits.
The milestone also validates its aim to advance both economic and environmental progress by transforming methane from any source into valuable outputs across methane-intensive industries, like oil and gas, agriculture, and waste management.
By meeting OMRI’s stringent requirements, meanwhile, Windfall says it has opened the door to a rapidly growing market that increasingly demands sustainable and effective alternatives to synthetic fertilisers.
A competitive product to conventional organic fertilisers
Windfall’s mems consume methane as a food source, transforming it into nitrogen-rich biomass that can be processed into high-value organic fertiliser for the user itself or to be sold in the market – reducing the negative environmental impacts associated with the overuse of synthetic fertiliser while strengthening fertiliser supply chains. Windfall’s nitrogen-rich fertiliser – with a target NPK ratio of 12-4-2 – for organic farming offers a competitive product to conventional organic fertilisers, with increased soil health benefits and reduced nitrogen runoff.
“Receiving OMRI certification for our OptiMem product marks the latest milestone achievement on our mission to remove and transform harmful methane emissions into valuable products like organic fertiliser,” says Josh Silverman, co-founder and CEO of Windfall Bio.
“An essential fertiliser input, this certification is key to cementing the environmental and economic benefits of Windfall’s novel methane-to-organic fertiliser output, enabling us to support organic farming while reducing the reliance on synthetic fertilisers. It’s a crucial step in our commitment to advancing sustainable agriculture, while driving rapid decarbonization and value creation across industries.”
The certification also follows Windfall successfully achieving commercial-scale production of its methane removal solution. In addition to rapidly expanding deployments of its nature-based solution to meet the needs of each customer industry across agriculture, oil and gas, and waste management sectors, the company is actively conducting greenhouse and field trials of its fertiliser for organic farming and providing large samples to its intended fertiliser partners.
