US agtech company teams up with Food4Sustainability partner to accelerate Soil Health in Portugal
Biome Makers has expanded its reach to Portugal through a partnership with Food4Sustainability, a not-for-profit association dedicated to innovation in sustainable food production.
Food4Sustainability has licensed Biome Makers’ proprietary technology, BeCrop, to conduct unique soil microbiome analysis at its laboratory. This development aims to support Portuguese and other European farmers on their journey to restore soil health and promote both sustainable and regenerative agricultural systems.
“We are thrilled to join forces with Food4Sustainability, amplifying our impact in agriculture as they license our technology,” said Dr Alberto Acedo, co-founder and CSO of Biome Makers. “Together, through BeCrop, we empower farmers by providing advanced tools and insights into soil biology. We foster a sustainable and soil-centric approach to farming, cultivating healthier ecosystems and ultimately yielding a brighter future for generations to come.”
BeCrop soil analysis enables farmers and advisors to understand their farmland and soil health. It offers predictive insights on yield improvements, disease risks, and sustainable farming practices.
Farmers can send soil samples to Food4Sustainability and receive their BeCrop results including key metrics on nutrient cycling, biodiversity, hormone production, disease pressure, and stress adaptation. The results are also available through Biome Makers’ digital soil health platform, which provides clear, actionable insights for boosting crop resilience and productivity.
Gonçalo Amorim, CEO of BGI and board member of Food4Sustainability, commented: “Understanding in detail the soil microbiome of our farmer community is essential for shifting to regenerative agriculture and achieve a sustainable food production system. By enhancing the diversity and functionality of soil microbiomes, we can improve nutrient cycling, increase crop resilience, and reduce dependency on synthetic chemical inputs”.
This focus on soil microbiome is part of Food4Sustainability’s broader mission to create and implement innovative, low-cost, targeted solutions to eliminate the need for chemical fertilisers and increase farmer margins and economics with a measurable impact in soil regeneration.
As part of its ongoing projects, Food4Sustainability is working on several pilot programmes to demonstrate the practical applications of soil microbiome assessment. These pilots involve comprehensive soil health assessments, the application of microbial inoculants, the implementation of regenerative farming practices, and continuous monitoring to measure the impacts on crop performance and soil quality.
Biome Makers continues to license and expand BeCrop to different regions, including Europe, North, South, and Central America–most recently in countries like Brazil, Australia, and now Portugal.
