A new startup is using soil microbes to power agricultural sensors that inform farm management practices, potentially raising yields, reducing inputs, and limiting environmental impacts.

Called Bactery, the company produces “bacteria-powered batteries” that use the microbes in a farm’s soil to power sensors for data collection.

“There are statistics showing how valuable data is in terms of helping farmers increase their yields but also save on their resources,” Bactery, CEO Jakub Dziegielowski told The Energy Mix.

Bactery’s aim, Dziegielowski added, is to “create a tech that delivers this power in a much more sustainable but also much more economical way,” which could “open doors to those smaller-scaled farmers who can’t afford these [data-collecting] techs right now.”

Data is a powerful tool for farmers using precision agriculture methods to farm efficiently and strategically. But the current on-farm power delivery methods for those sensors often rely on obstructive cabling, single-use chemical batteries, and weather-dependent solar panels that “largely restrict deployment of agri-data solutions,” stated an earlier release about the company.

Unlike the other power sources, the company argues that its product is more accessible because it doesn’t require extensive wiring or solar panels to supply power. It states on its website that it can help deliver power to remote and off-grid locations.

Bactery’s product works by capturing soil electrons produced by electrigenic bacteria digesting organic matter. The electrons are captured on one of two electrodes to create an electrochemical environment, allowing them to circulate through a wire to recharge a battery. With this system, the Bactery can generate energy for four years, supplying 0.2 watts per square meter.

The company’s market for the technology currently includes sensor manufacturers and distributors, as well as agri-data management platforms that are currently involved with distributing and maintaining sensors.

“At the minute, these technologies are a little too expensive for an average farmer to go ahead and purchase themselves. So, what happens instead is farmers purchase the data and subscribe to these data platforms,” Dziegielowski explained.

But he added that Bactery could eventually be scaled and could become cheap enough to be directly marketed to farmers. If it can overcome that affordability barrier, Bactery could facilitate a wider deployment of sensors on farms, and could also help smaller farms pursue precision agriculture strategies that they are currently priced out of.

“With our tech, we’re hoping to address [cost barriers] and make them much more affordable and easier to manage in a larger volume,” said Dziegielowski, “because at the moment, installation and maintenance costs are just way too crazy.”