Phosphorus
The element that makes up the backbone of DNA. As Phosphate, it feeds the world’s crops as fertilizer, in turn feeding us. But our phosphate use is fundamentally broken.
What's the problem?
It’s a race to the bottom.
Like fossil fuels, phosphate is a limited resource we mine from the ground. Nobody knows when “peak phosphate” will come, but as we run out, fertilizer and food prices will skyrocket without a sustainable alternative.
We waste what little we have.
After we eat it in our food, the phosphate we laboriously mine is washed out to sea, polluting our rivers by promoting harmful algal blooms that block sunlight and reduce oxygen levels, killing invertebrates and fish.
But what if we were to close the loop on our phosphate use, capturing our unnecessary waste and feeding it back into agriculture?
