British-Swiss startup Mootral is reinventing the way the world thinks about carbon credits.
Mootral has developed a completely natural feed for livestock that reduces methane emissions. And now, it has its very own carbon credits.
Context:
- Livestock farming is one of the largest creators of methane emissions globally
- Mootral has a unique approach to solving this problem by changing the feed livestock consumes
- Called Mootral Ruminant, early data has showed a 30%+ reduction in methane emissions from livestock
- Further, feeding livestock Mootral Ruminant has no impact on the taste or texture of the meat
The big idea:
- Mootral has developed the first ever methodology for quantifying and monitoring methane reductions for carbon credits
- Verified and issued by VERRA, the global leader in carbon crediting, Mootral has created ‘CowCredits’ which equate to the same standards as a typical carbon credit
- ‘CowCredits' are issued by VERRA and can be purchased by companies
- The vision to create a positive ecosystem for farmers, beef and dairy companies and the climate, where reducing emissions has a net benefit to everyone
Going deeper:
- The need for solving the emissions problem from livestock farming is not new, with numerous startups in cellular agriculture and food tech working on different approaches
- Notably, Bill Gates and Breakthrough Energy Ventures led the $12 millionSeries A in Australian based Rumin8, which is focused on a range of supplements- largely derived from red seaweed- for livestock that reduces their methane emissions
- The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has put a large focus on reducing methane emissions, citing that over 2 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year comes from livestock farming alone
- Recently, a new study from Scotland Rural College was awarded $2.8 million in funding to determine if daffodils could reduce methane emissions by extracting a chemical from the plant called haemanthamine. Early data form the study shows that it could reduce methane emissions in cows by 30%
