Australian Rural & Regional News asked a number of further questions of Dr Tom Williams, CEO and Co-Founder of Number 8 Bio. Read the full interview below the release.
Number 8 Bio, Media Release, 10 September 2024
Number 8 Bio has successfully raised $7 million in its seed round, marking a significant milestone in its mission to dramatically reduce methane emissions in the livestock sector.
As a company at the crossroads of climatetech, biotech, and agtech, Number 8 Bio has attracted investment from Main Sequence, Breakthrough Victoria, and The March Group. This capital raise will advance product development, scale up a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, and forge key commercial partnerships.
Dr Tom Williams, CEO and Co-Founder of Number 8 Bio, stated, “This funding marks a pivotal moment in advancing our efforts to reduce methane emissions in agriculture. Our unique approach not only promises to reduce rumen emissions by up to 90 per cent but also rumen productivity, making a significant return on investment for farmers possible.”
Number 8 Bio is committed to doing its part in the transition to carbon-neutral food production. “We see methane abatement as an exciting opportunity – for farmers, animals, and the planet. We’re developing a feed additive that consistently decreases these emissions from livestock, helping the beef and dairy industries decarbonise and retailers reduce Scope 3 emissions,” emphasised Dr Williams.
Number 8 Bio attributes their deep scientific expertise and high throughput testing as the key to unlocking improved productivity alongside methane mitigation. Their two-pronged solution is a key differentiator compared with others currently on the market.
Current, well-advanced trials conducted in collaboration with Queensland Animal Science Precinct (QASP) and the University of New England (UNE) showcase the technology’s effectiveness and consistency.
“To feed a rapidly growing population on a warming planet, there have to be multiple solutions, we all need to do our part. At Number 8 Bio, we’re changing feed to feed positive change, helping farmers grow the food we love, without the emissions,” he added.
With a farmer-first approach, Number 8 Bio recognises the complexities and uncertainties farmers face regarding emissions. The founders’ initial successful exploration of yeast has now evolved into advanced testing of synergistic ingredients and prebiotics, allowing them to optimise the product and reduce costs even further.
With a core focus on creating practical, cost-effective solutions that benefit farmers directly, Number 8 Bio’s proprietary technology, specifically designed for the dairy and cattle industry, offers immense opportunities and value.
“We’ve designed our product alongside farmers to best suit all conditions, ensuring it makes both financial and sustainability sense,” said Dr. Williams. “Our product variants are tailored for intensive and extensive operations, allowing for seamless integration.”
Alongside the production of methane-inhibiting feed additives, the company is also exploring ways to expand its core technology to enhance the profitability of fermentation processes.
“We are also testing how we can replicate the low-methane fermentation process that occurs inside a cow’s stomach in anaerobic digesters, with the aim to make fermentation significantly cheaper and produce a range of carbon-negative food ingredients,” explains Dr Williams.
The recent funding boost is a welcome support as Number 8 Bio nears the end of their initial trials, bringing them closer to market readiness and ensuring continued delivery of exceptional value and improved feed conversion efficiency.
Australian Rural & Regional News asked some further questions of
Dr Tom Williams, co-founder of Number 8 Bio
ARR.News: Farmers are being hit by cost increases to inputs already. Do you have any hard numbers as to what the end cost of your new product might be?
Dr Tom Williams: Making sure the farmer gets a return on their investment in our feed additives is our primary focus. Methane is a unique opportunity to realise a new source of value for producers since 10-12 per cent of an animal’s nutrition is wasted to the atmosphere as methane.
We’re in the process of finalising our product offerings this year, but expect to be able to provide a 3:1 ROI through improved feed conversion ratios, with further returns expected through carbon credits once they become available. This productivity effect has been unlocked through the microbiology expertise that the Number 8 Bio team has, and the control over rumen energy flows that this understanding allows.
Specific up-front pricing is nuanced according to dry matter intake, which of our products is being used, and formulation. We encourage farmers to reach out to us via our website to discuss this.
ARR.News: How much of the product will be needed to have an impact?
Dr Tom Williams: By adding as little as 50 grams of our BetterFeed™ additive to daily cattle feed we could reduce ruminant methane by up to 90 per cent.
ARR.News: How is it given? Pellets, blocks etc
Dr Tom Williams: We’ve worked with farmers to build a range of additives that address the unique needs of each market. Each product is designed for seamless integration and ease of use on-farm, with delivery methods in pellet, lick, or liquid form.
ARR.News: Is the product subject to weather and the environment? (ie potentially impacted by drought, flood, heat etc)
Dr Tom Williams: Our ingredients are particularly resistant to weathering and temperature changes, and have been very stable in our trials to date.
ARR.News: Can it be stored readily? eg long term and without refrigeration?
Dr Tom Williams: Yes, we’ve stored the products over several months without refrigeration with efficacy retained.
ARR.News: Where will it be manufactured? Are you planning multiple sites?
Dr Tom Williams: We currently have one production facility in Sydney that can produce 30,000 doses per day, with space to rapidly expand production within this facility to 100,000+ doses per day when needed. We’re also considering additional facilities in rural Victoria and Queensland as we grow.
ARR.News: How many people might a facility employ?
Dr Tom Williams: To be determined according to the scale of the production, but if we’re to produce the millions of doses per day necessary to make a difference to Australia’s agricultural emissions and productivity, then a Number 8 Bio facility could easily become a significant boost to a region.
ARR.News: You mention carbon negative food ingredients. How are the food ingredients carbon negative?
Dr Tom Williams: This refers to our ability to make food and feed ingredients through a microbial fermentation process that utilises organic waste that would otherwise have been converted into methane. This technology will make products that are separate from our ruminant feed additives, but it utilises our core skills and effectiveness with microbiology.
ARR.News: Does the stated 90 per cent decrease in rumen emissions include the carbon negative food ingredients? Or is the 90 per cent reduction from the stock emissions alone?
Dr Tom Williams: From stock emissions alone. The carbon negative ingredients are a separate product line.
ARR.News: A 90 per cent reduction in emissions and carbon negative food ingredients – so, adding this product into the equation, have you looked into how far off a carbon neutral or even carbon negative livestock industry might be?
Dr Tom Williams: We’d love to work with farmers to understand this potential. There’s a chance that by making ruminants more efficient through fewer methane emissions, that their grazing intensity is lowered, leading to stronger carbon sequestration in soils. This is the type of holistic thinking that might make a carbon negative cow possible. Methane is 25x more potent as a greenhouse gas compared to CO2, so it’s usually going to be the biggest source of emissions in beef, dairy, and wool/sheep operations. Unlike soil carbon, the positive effects on the animal and the environment are instantaneous and easily verified.
