Biochar Industrial Group (BIG), a Nigerian climate-tech startup, has raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding to scale a model that converts agricultural waste from food-processing companies into biochar and carbon-removal credits. The round was led by BREEGA, with participation from the Catalyst Fund, while the Mulago Foundation provided additional non-dilutive funding.
Founded by former Releaf Earth executives Ikenna Nzewi, Uzoma Ayogu and Isaiah Udotong, BIG is targeting the intersection of agricultural waste, carbon emissions and declining soil quality. Its approach is based on placing industrial pyrolysis equipment directly at food-processing facilities, allowing agricultural residues to be processed close to where they are generated.
The company plans to work with processors producing significant volumes of materials such as nut shells, maize cobs, husks and other agricultural residues. Rather than requiring processors to finance the necessary equipment, BIG operates under a “Biochar-as-a-Service” model, where it finances, installs and operates the systems while sharing the resulting value with its partners.
At the centre of the model is pyrolysis, a process that heats biomass in an environment with little oxygen. This converts organic material into biochar, a carbon-rich substance that can be used as a soil amendment. Because some of the carbon contained in the original biomass remains stored in the resulting biochar, the process can also generate carbon-removal credits for sale to buyers seeking measurable emissions-removal projects.
This creates two potential value streams from material that might otherwise be treated as waste: biochar for agricultural applications and carbon-removal credits for international markets.
The model also addresses a major logistical challenge in agricultural carbon removal. Transporting bulky biomass over long distances can make projects expensive and reduce their environmental efficiency. By installing equipment at processing facilities, BIG can use concentrated waste streams where they are already available, reducing the need for extensive collection and transportation networks.
The new funding will help BIG deploy additional equipment, expand its team and strengthen the systems needed to measure and verify carbon removal. Independent verification is particularly important because credible measurement of the amount of carbon removed is central to the value of carbon credits.
For African agribusinesses, the model could also create an additional source of income from materials that have traditionally represented a disposal challenge. Instead of simply managing agricultural residues, processors can potentially participate in the value generated from biochar and carbon markets.
BIG’s funding comes as investors show growing interest in climate technologies that connect Africa’s agricultural resources with global demand for carbon removal. However, scaling the model will depend on securing sufficient feedstock, operating pyrolysis equipment reliably, producing commercially useful biochar and generating carbon credits that meet buyers’ verification requirements.
With the $1.5 million investment, BIG now plans to expand its factory-based model across Sub-Saharan Africa, turning agricultural waste into a potential climate asset while building infrastructure for a developing carbon-removal market.
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