Described by one outlet as “the Tesla of cows” and featured in the New York Times, Bloomberg and The Times of London, Mootral Ruminant is the product of years of research, started by leading research facility Neem Biotech, which led to the birth of spinout company Mootral.
Mootral Founder and CEO Thomas Hafner, life sciences entrepreneur and co-founder of Zaluvida Ventures with nearly three decades of experience in the industry, is now seeking a further $2.5 million in investment to close the current seed funding round, with a Series A round to follow later in the year, to help realise his vision of providing Mootral Ruminant at no cost to farmers across the world. This represents a huge opportunity for agriculture to play its part in fighting climate change, and opening a new market in carbon offset.
Agricultural emissions are set to be under scrutiny at the COP26 climate summit in November this year, while the global carbon market, estimated to be worth USD $215 billion, is anticipated to grow even further after a 34% leap in 2019 on the previous year. Mootral is the first company to sell carbon credits generated through reductions in cattle methane emissions meaning businesses across the globe can purchase CowCredits to off-set their emissions. Mootral’s carbon credits are now also eligible for use as part of global climate reduction schemes such as CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation).
Mootral estimates that if all 1.5 billion cows in the world ate Mootral Ruminant for a year, the reduction in methane emissions would be equivalent to taking 330 million European cars off the road – more than currently in use in the EU.* It also means over half a billion carbon credits could be generated, making Mootral one of the most scalable currently available solutions in the fight against climate change.
Currently Mootral feed is used by commercial dairy farms such as Brades farm in the UK which supplies premium barista milk to the UK’s leading coffee shops, including the high-end chain GAIL’s.
Mootral, which is leading the charge for sustainable agriculture, plans to turn their attention next to the climate friendly beef market with pilots taking place in the US and Europe this year, as part of a bid to get sustainable meat on the menu in steakhouses across the globe.
Thomas Hafner, CEO of Mootral, comments: “Cows play an important role in our ecosystem, improving soil quality and supporting carbon sequestration, as well as providing a great source of nutrition. It’s time for us to help them become part of the solution in the global fight against climate change. By bringing down methane emissions, which is 84 times more potent as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide in the first 20 years, Mootral is a scalable technology that opens a window of opportunity to avert climate catastrophe while we decarbonise the economy.
He continues: ”We’re very excited to launch Mootral carbon credits on the market: they offer superb value to buyers, make a real difference to emissions, and help sustain our ancient farming communities and traditions. I’m on a mission to make this feed supplement available at no cost to all cattle farmers eventually but I need forward-thinking investors to get on board today for that to happen and to help us scale up internationally. We’re seeking investors who want to tackle climate change globally but to make a difference locally. Ethical investors who hope to support farmers within their supply chains to cut emissions whilst also being able to increase yields and sell their milk at a premium.”
https://www.mootral.com/invest/
https://www.mootral.com/carbon/
- *1.5 billion cows in the world, collectively produce 4.6 gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions per year.
- 39.1% of these emissions stem from the enteric digestive process. Mootral Ruminant reduces these CO2 emissions by 30% on average.
- If every cow was fed Mootral for a year, 539,580,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent would not be emitted (4.6 gigatonnes x 0.391 x 0.3).
- According to an IPCC report, the average tested emissions of 2011 Light Duty Vehicles in Europe is 136 gCO2/km.
- According to Odyssee-Mure, the average distance travelled per car per year in the EU in 2018 was 12,000 km/year.
- This means one car in the EU emits an average of 1.632 tonnes of CO2 per year ((12,000 x 136) / 1,000,000) = 1.632 tonnes).
- If 539,580,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent are not emitted each year, that would be equivalent to taking 330,625,000 cars off the road (539,580,000/1.632 = 330,625,000).
- There are currently over 240 million cars in the EU.
The Mootral story so far
Mootral Ruminant is the product of years of laboratory research by Neem Biotech, an innovative biotech research facility, which led to the formation of the spinout company Mootral. After years of careful testing in the lab and in the field and as recently featured in the New York Times, this natural supplement has been shown to cut farmers herds’ emissions by up to 38% and increase yield in a natural, scalable way. The result of which could offer one of the simplest and fastest ways to cut a major source of greenhouse-gas emissions. The same team has also now made it possible to create ‘CowCredits’.
A CowCredit is a branded term for a carbon credit. It equals a reduction of one tonne of CO2 equivalent. What makes it special to the usual carbon credits on the market is that it is based on emissions from cattle and can be produced locally. CowCredits are a measurable, independently verified, and fully traceable way to tackle global warming in one’s own neighbourhood, region or country. They are also tradable commodities in the rapidly expanding carbon offset market. CowCredits carry the added value of good corporate and social behaviour and incremental consumer satisfaction as the reduction can be achieved in one’s own supply chain. The company is confident that each new investment in Mootral, CowCredits and feed will help organisations publicly demonstrate their commitment to tackling climate change – one of the top priorities for consumers and shareholders across the planet.
Mootral’s CowCredits are issued by Verra (the official body that oversees verified carbon standards).
Verra is a Washington, DC-based non-profit organization that manages standards for reducing GHG emissions, improving livelihoods and protecting natural resources. Its leading portfolio of standards includes the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), the preeminent standard used by the voluntary carbon market with 1,400 registered projects in 80 countries, and the Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards with more than a hundred registered projects worldwide.
From tackling ultra-rare diseases to groundbreaking wound healing technologies to winning the fight against climate change, Neem Biotech is a pioneer in under-researched areas of science. The lab is now demonstrating success with the birth of Agritech startup Mootral – whose 100% natural feed supplement based on uniquely standardised bioactives from garlic can reduce methane emissions from cattle, one of the world’s biggest sources of greenhouse gas, by up to 38%.
Thomas Hafner is the CEO of Mootral, the company he founded in 2018 with his wife Carin Beumer, who is on the Board of Directors. The pair are also Co-Founders of life science venture firm Zaluvida Ventures, and respectively the Chairman and Director of Neem Biotech, the innovation and incubation platform for a growing portfolio of groundbreaking therapeutic solutions in the space of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) and rare diseases. Thomas Hafner has more than 27 years of experience as a life sciences entrepreneur, with experience of fostering successful businesses and unique products in consumer health, Biotech and Agritech.
Carin Beumer has decades of experience in finance. Alongside her roles at Zaluvida, Neem Biotech and Mootral, Carin Beumer is also Chair of Healthnet TPO, a Dutch-based international NGO that she rescued financially through the Zaluvida Foundation, established by the family. HealthNetTPO is the biggest provider of mental health services with over 5,000 team members in war torn countries like Afghanistan, South Sudan and Burundi, amongst others. Carin also sits on the board of directors of international NGO, Mercy Corps.
