May 25, 2021   SOURCE: BusinessWire

Kula Bio Raises $10M to Advance Sustainable Agriculture

Kula Bio, a leader in sustainable nitrogen solutions, announced today it has closed a $10 million seed round. The round was led by Collaborative Fund with participation from prominent environmental funds, including The Nature Conservancy, Lowercarbon Capital, and the Grantham Environmental Trust’s Neglected Climate Opportunities Fund.

Kula Bio makes Kula-N, a next generation nitrogen biofertilizer that helps farmers maintain yield and significantly reduce environmental impact from traditional, synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. Since its founding in 2018, the company has run a series of third-party replicated field trials across diverse geographies, soil types and crops, proving that it can replace up to 80% of a farm’s nitrogen use. All of this is accomplished with a patent-protected method — derived from peer reviewed research performed at Harvard University- that boosts a naturally occurring process of biological nitrogen fixation. Kula-N can be applied via irrigation and works for all crops, enabling farmers to seamlessly transition to sustainable nitrogen.

“At Kula Bio we’re proud to be backed by investors who truly believe in and share our mission,” said Bill Brady, founding CEO and director of Kula Bio. “With this support, we have initiated key hires focused on operations, sales, marketing, agronomy, and research & development. Additionally, we’re in the process of developing our first pilot manufacturing site. We are intensifying our efforts to get our product to more hardworking farmers and continue to push the agricultural industry to a more sustainable future.”

Today, 90% of fertilizer in use is still synthetic and a significant contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. Beyond greenhouse gas emissions, synthetic nitrogen sources can harm local environments and water supplies. To comply with new laws ranging from limits on nitrogen runoff to capping atmospheric emissions from nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide (CO2), the agriculture market will need to adapt.

“Kula Bio has created a breakthrough solution for the agricultural sector,” said Craig Shapiro, founder and managing partner of Collaborative Fund. “Kula-N improves upon traditional fertilizers by improving soil health and creating a cost-effective, environmentally friendly solution for farmers.”

Other investors in the round include AgFunder, BOPU, Box Group, Decent Capital, Embark Ventures, iSelect Fund, and Pillar VC.

About Kula Bio
Kula Bio is a leader in sustainable nitrogen solutions. Founded in 2018 and built upon peer-reviewed research developed at Harvard University, the company has developed a patent-protected, next generation nitrogen biofertilizer that works seamlessly for farmers. With a natural and powerful solution, Kula Bio enables farmers to meet their crop yield goals while improving their operations’ sustainability. For more information, visit www.kulabio.com.