Climate Adaptation & Low-Carbon Housing Challenge
Húmica, carbon & biodiversity agriculture
What is the name of your solution?
Húmica, carbon & biodiversity agriculture
Provide a one-line summary of your solution.
Decarbonize your company by re-carbonizing agricultural soils.
Film your elevator pitch.
What specific problem are you solving?
A series of interconnected problems:
-Smallholder producers climate uncertainty
-Soil degradation and soil carbon depletion
-Climate migration (refugees)
-Low confidence in traditional carbon credits.
In Mexico, smallholder producers (SHP) live with high levels of UNCERTAINTY, the main reason is that at the end of cropping season they only receive between 1-5% of the economic value of the food and commercial crops they produce. Also, due to the climate crisis the agricultural lands are being depleted of fertility, there are 1,965 million hectares of degraded soils worldwide, and in the case of Mexico it is reported that between 55 - 61.7% of the soils are degraded. This causes low agricultural yields and the absence of water for food production. Furthermore, every year the world's soils release about 4% of their stored carbon into the atmosphere, which is ten times the burning of fossil fuels. The acute UNCERTAINTY experienced by SHPs is the main driver for climate migration or climate refugees, it ts estimated that there could be 1.2 billion climate refugees by 2050. Reports from NY Times estimated that 680,000 climate migrants might move from Central America and Mexico to the United States between now and 2050, this without counting the illegal migration that is already happening. Finally, there are climate projects that help protect the rainforest or natural landscapes by selling carbon credits from large areas that are owned by SHP groups, but this kind of projects rarely focuses on the SHP’s needs or certainty, rather the confidence in current carbon credits system has been questioned as reports from The Guardian states that “more than 90% of rainforest carbon offsets by biggest certifier are worthless”. These types of projects have even encouraged the forced displacement of the original communities and SHP’s landowners in favor of corporate interests derived from the purchase and sale of carbon credits.
What is your solution?
We offer the first “à la carte” decarbonization service for agricultural crops, focused on soil health, providing certainty to small agricultural producers (SHP) and the decarbonization of the value chain of companies or corporations. What does this mean?
Let's see it with an example:
A food company in the USA consumes large amounts of orange or lemon juice that comes from the South of Mexico. This company requires quality citrus fruits, great flavor and high nutritional content. At the same time, this company is concerned about reducing its environmental footprint and each year it generates an EXPENDITURE by buying carbon credits (offsets) in the voluntary market, these credits come from forestry projects in Asia.
Well, our solution is to offer this company the opportunity to turn its annual SPEND of purchasing carbon credits into an INVESTMENT within its value chain. We design, monitor and execute soil re-carbonization and enrichment projects along with the group of SHPs where the citrus fruits are produced and the USA company buy every year.
We as Húmica developed a technology that removes carbon from the atmosphere and transforms it into biochar-based biofertilizers to be used and re-carbonize agricultural soils, we also implement regenerative agroforestry systems that together with Biochar improve crop yields by 30 % and increases its quality up to 20-25%. The SHP's citrus plots are transformed into an intensive carbon farming agroforestry system that is capable of issuing carbon and biodiversity credits for the next 100 years.
We call decarbonization services for agricultural crops “à la carte”, because we can replicate our model to practically any tropical agricultural crop or flavor ingredients with a high demand in the market such as: citrus, honey, coffee, avocado, cocoa, pepper, vanilla, onion, garlic, coriander, parsley, and vegetable proteins (peas, soybeans, chickpeas, beans), among others.
So companies that want to reduce their carbon footprint can choose “à la carte” the crop or ingredients that they want to decarbonize from the soils where they are grown, and the benefits of investing in the implementation of these projects include:
Generate your own carbon and biodiversity credit projects
Benefits within their own value chain (food companies),
Food traceability and carbon-biodiversity credits generated,
High confidence of climate projects with SHP's
Make sure that carbon credits generate social benefits and in no way forcefully displace original communities from the territories.
The benefits to SHPs that participate with Humica include:
Generate multiple sources of cash and income by moving from a monoculture system to a carbon farming agroforestry system (polycultures).
Increases in productivity and crop quality of 20-30>#/p###
Additional sources of income for carbon and biodiversity credits.
Reducing the risk of forced climate migration
Improve your health by avoiding the use of agrochemicals
More information:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vOFz5sKdgwrvTb3qyPKR35Ep2FXR8Fb6?usp=share_link
Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?
Our solution focuses on small agricultural producers (SHP's), in general their biggest problems are: low income and added to this the lack of constant cash flow during the year, that is, in addition to receiving a low and unfair income, it is also a The fact that they only receive income by selling their crops is a serious problem, and this can only be once a year, as is the case with some fruit crops.
We are changing this reality by transforming a monoculture system (only citrus) to an agroforestry, carbon and polyculture system. Where the SHP's can market their citrus and also produce honey, vegetable protein, aromatic plants, onion, garlic, pepper, etc. And in addition to polycultures, they also sequester carbon in the form of Biochar and restore local biodiversity.
We are focusing on local citrus (oranges and lime) producers in Mexico, with around 67,500 Ton / year or $500 million MXN in the state of Puebla and 1.2 million Ton/year or $2.4 billion MXN in the state of Veracruz. With a total of 15,000 - 20,000 producers locally.
How are you and your team well-positioned to deliver this solution?
Our team :
Veronica Muñiz (Co-Founder) - Industrial engineering. Diploma in Project Management.
Ramón Bacre (Co-Founder) - Biotechnology engineering. Master in Earth Sciences.
Part time:
Alejandra Garza - Biotechnology engineer, MBA, agile project manager.
Arabela Vega - Specialist in tropical soil ecology and soil mapping.
Advisors:
Catalina Zamora Fonck - Food Security & AgriFood Systems, Mentor TFF Academy.
Maria Thaís Affonso - Senior Advisor - Strategy & Intelligence, Life Sciences Agribusiness
Húmica was born in 2020 as a renewal of a previous venture called Mexican Biotechnology against Climate Change, or BMCC, which sought to combat the environmental crisis through stabilization technologies and atmospheric carbon capture in agricultural soils. The main learning obtained with BMCC was that it is NOT ENOUGH to develop advanced technologies, but it is necessary to focus on a business model that solves the specific needs or problems of a segment of clients or beneficiaries. Based on this experience, we identified a very important need for agricultural producers in Mexico: the need to obtain CERTAINTY during the process of selling their products and OBTAIN ACCESS to markets that pay fair prices for their crops.
At Húmica we are currently a team of 4 people focused on promoting regenerative agriculture as a large-scale solution proposal that allows us to REVERSE climate change and the environmental crisis.
Our approach is based on the design and execution of a system for the production and commercialization of food that complies with 3 axis: -Carbon capture in agricultural soils, -Regeneration of Biodiversity, -Social justice and integration for SHP’s in rural areas
We are well positioned because we are SHP ourselves and we want to transform the food industry into a tool that helps reverse climate crises, biodiversity loss and gender injustices around the world. The idea arose because in a previous venture we wanted to sell biofertilizers that capture atmospheric CO2. When we wanted to sell with agricultural producers we found that they simply don't care about climate change or biodiversity. We learned that your greatest need is to generate certainty in your processes and sales from your products. There we had the idea of changing the business model and Húmica was born. A startup that gives farmers certainty, empowers women and helps them sell their products at better prices. But for that to be possible, we must deliver value to a specific market segment, in that sense it is that the value of environmental regeneration can bring benefits to customers in cities who are looking for delicious products that help reverse the climate crisis.
Which dimension of the Challenge does your solution most closely address?
Adapt land and coastal areas to more extreme weather, including through climate-smart agriculture or restoring natural ecosystems to mitigate impacts.
In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?
Teziutlán
In what country is your solution team headquartered?
What is your solution’s stage of development?
Prototype: A venture or organization building and testing its product, service, or business model, but which is not yet serving anyone
How many people does your solution currently serve?
We are working with100 local producers in 2023 in the state of Puebla and Veracruz in Mexico
During 2021 and 2022, we worked with around 520 producers from different regions in the state of Oaxaca in Mexico.
Why are you applying to Solve?
We combine our biofertilizers with regenerative carbon farming systems that can be implemented to produce foods like orange juice, coffee, cocoa, avocado, honey, flavored herbs, or even tea. We want to participate in the Solve program to achieve the dream that every time you consume one of these products from companies with a global presence, you help to regenerate carbon in the soil, biodiversity and above all, ensure that the local communities of producers they can prosper and stay on their land for generations and not be forced to abandon it. We need help to continue validating our model, to obtain soil data and to expand to other regions of the world.
In which of the following areas do you most need partners or support?
Who is the Team Lead for your solution?
Ramón Bacre
What makes your solution innovative?
Because we are materializing solutions that help reverse the climate crisis, every time you buy orange juice, lemon, coffee, chocolate, honey or lemongrass you are sequestering CO2 in the soil, regenerating biodiversity and helping young women to prosper in their communities. .
What are your impact goals for the next year and the next five years, and how will you achieve them?
Yr 1 We were able to remove and sequester 340Ton of atmospheric CO2, helped 320 smallholder producers & designed 2 regen food products, gross 2021 revenue $20,000 USD, We are launching our first regenerative e-shop where you can buy carbon credits & honey or cacao that removes CO2 from the air or empower women in rural areas
Yr 5 we will complete a regen mktplace where smallholder producers can sell carbon and regen products directly to organizations or enterprises looking for regen ingredients.
Which of the UN Sustainable Development Goals does your solution address?
How are you measuring your progress toward your impact goals?
indicators such as some of the most relevant:
-Carbon stock on the property
-Emissions in the product life cycle
-Carbon content
-% of forests in agroforestry schemes
-Number of innovative projects that positively impact employment and other social aspects.
-Number of cooperatives and microfinance schemes to empower communities.
-Carbon intensity added value/KgCO2
-Number of small producers (>5 ha.) that sell to the organization.
-The enterprise has schemes for the conversion of waste into energy and/or biofertilizers
-Production units certified in impact on biodiversity.
-Percentage increase in the price paid by the buyer to the producer for the added value of the good.
-Reforested surface
What is your theory of change?
It's a cold winter evening, a single woman (24) comes home from the gym, takes a shower, and then makes a salad for dinner. While she eats she cools down and starts thinking about a hot drink, at this moment she starts watching the first part of a Climate Reality documentary on netflix. After a while, she starts to get annoyed by the climate crisis, useless discussions of high politics, and then starts crying. After finishing watching the documentary, she goes online to post her frustration with saving our planet, then sees an "ad for delicious hot chocolate that helps reverse climate change", she clicks on it. She begins learning about Regen Ag, carbon farming, and then buys "delicious, hot chocolate that empowers women around the world." The next day when she returns from the gym she receives the chocolate from her, she prepares it and starts watching the 2nd part of the documentary, only this time she can't stop smiling.
Describe the core technology that powers your solution.
The Húmica agri-food model: 1) Soil carbon biotechnology, 2) Edapho-ecological diagnosis using data science, and 3) Education programs for girls and women in rural areas. If regenerative carbon farming practices are added, the biofertilizers and the empowerment of women in rural areas, the total amount of CO2 that can be offset is 162 Gigaton of CO2eq worldwide by 2050, that's about 11 times the annual CO2 emissions of the US and Chinese together.
Biochar based biofertilizers:
As a biotechnological company, our innovation consists in removing atmospheric CO2, stabilizing it and then transforming it into biofertilizers. By doing this we can remove up to 3.67 tons of CO2 per ton of biofertilizers used, our fertilizer technology has the potential to remove around 900 million tons of CO2 (0.9 GigaTon) by 2050.
Which of the following categories best describes your solution?
A new business model or process that relies on technology to be successful
Please select the technologies currently used in your solution:
If your solution has a website or an app, provide the links here:
www.humica.store
In which countries do you currently operate?
In which countries will you be operating within the next year?
What type of organization is your solution team?
For-profit, including B-Corp or similar models
How many people work on your solution team?
Our team : Veronica Muñiz (Co-Founder) - Industrial engineering. Diploma in Project Management. Ramón Bacre (Co-Founder) - Biotechnology engineering. Master in Earth Sciences. Part time: Alejandra Garza - Biotechnology engineer, MBA, agile project manager. Arabela Vega - Specialist in tropical soil ecology and soil mapping. Advisors: Catalina Zamora Fonck - Food Security & AgriFood Systems, Mentor TFF Academy. Maria Thaís Affonso - Senior Advisor - Strategy & Intelligence, Life Sciences Agribusi
How long have you been working on your solution?
10
What is your approach to incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusivity into your work?
The market today drives consumers to Degenerate the planet, destroy it. In addition, the current food production system is extremely unfair with the producers in the field, since they bear the greatest risks, problems, invest more time, knowledge, costs and effort so that at the end of the harvest they do not even earn 5%. of the commercial value of the food they produce, this situation is the main reason we want to change.
Our diversity, equity, and inclusion policy is focused on small agricultural producers, we have worked with indigenous communities in at least 4 states of Mexico, we design soil biotechnology training and translate all scientific-technical language into native indigenous languages such as Zapotec, Mixtec, or Mixe.
Our work in the field is also oriented to include the participation of women agricultural producers in a strategic way, since they are the most open producers to innovate, adopt new methodologies and participate in field training.
We fully agree with MIT Solve’s commitment on “Indigenous Peoples as the traditional stewards of the land, and the enduring relationship that exists between them and their traditional territories. The land on which we sit is the traditional unceded territory of the Wampanoag Nation. We acknowledge the painful history of genocide and forced occupation of their territory, and we honor and respect the many diverse indigenous people connected to this land on which we gather from time immemorial”.
We as Humica do not like that the food industry offers food options that degrade soils, deforest, take jungle and animals out of their habitats. Food choices are often frustrating because you can only get "healthy and organic products" in high-priced specialty stores in rich, developed countries. We want to change that, we want to democratize access to regenerative food, we dream of carbon farming going mainstream, forests and food jungles everywhere, in every country. Regenerative nutrition does not have to be "elite food".
We want to break the “unicorn minded entrepreneur system”, we hate the idea of a billion dollar company that just wants to ACCUMULATE money. Instead, we want to become a DISTRIBUTIVE startup, which means we want to grow big, but NOT ACCUMULATE, but instead dream of sharing our billion-dollar valuation and profits with the communities we work with and restore the planet.
What is your business model?
We are in a transition phase of our business model, from a traditional consulting services in soil science and biotechnology to a new business model to offer decarbonizing projects for food companies that need to decarbonize their food value chains and ingredients. Let me explain…
In 2021 and 2022 we offered soil consulting services to world scale organizations like Rainforest Alliance, such services consisted on designing and implementing a “soil enrichment plan” for coffee producers in 5 different regions of indigenous communities in Oaxaca.
There we learned that coffee producers and indigenous communities are not aware of the “social projects and benefits” that are being implemented on their territories, that include carbon capture and biodiversity projects. And we also learned that big corporations that purchase carbon credits from such communities do not know anything bout the local communities, their stories or how the carbon is being removed and captured from the atmosphere.
That is a reality that we did not like, and must change.
So now we are transitioning into a new business model that includes providing “à la carte” decarbonization service for agricultural crops, focused on soil health, providing certainty to small agricultural producers (SHP) and the decarbonization of the value chain of companies or corporations.
We start with local communities:
-We provide them with technology and know-how to produce biochar based biofertilizers
-We provide them with agroforestry methods and training to produce more than one crop in the same territory, for example a system of citrus trees, honey, vanilla and veg- protein
-Market access to their cropping systems
-Generate carbon and biodiversity credits from agricultural lands in tropical areas
We design and implement projects for food companies that need a decarbonization scheme and fulfill their SDG’ goals:
-Design, monitor and implement decarbonization projects of commercial crops and “flavor ingredients”
-Carbon and biodiversity credits from their own value chains
-Food and carbon-biodiversity credits traceability
-Access to a future platform that will contain all the information of climate benefits and reports of SDGs
Do you primarily provide products or services directly to individuals, to other organizations, or to the government?
Organizations (B2B)What is your plan for becoming financially sustainable?
We need to gather as much data from soils as possible. We need funding to finish our demostrative field trials and show the benefits of producing agricultural carbon-biodiversity credits and the agroforestry systems.
How do we make money?
We charge for:
-Designing, implementing and monitoring the decarbonization projects
-25% fee of carbon & biodiversity credits, 75% of credits belong to SHP’s
-10% fee of new Agroforestry derived crops being produced and sold in the market: for example production of honey, veg protein and flavour crops that were not produced before by the SHP’s
-Selling biochar biofertilizers to SHP’s at low rates.
Solution Team
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Ramon Bacre B.Sc. Biotechnology, M.Sc. Earth Sciences, Húmica
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Our Organization
Húmica