Terviva, Inc., an agricultural innovation company partnering with farmers to grow and harvest pongamia, today announced the appointment of two senior members of its executive leadership team — Simmarpal Singh as Chief Operating Officer and Manju Kohli as Senior Vice President, People Operation

For the past 15 years, today’s guest: Naveen Sikka, has been working to commercialize the pongamia tree. There are several things that are special about this emerging crop. First, it’s a legume, so like soybeans, peas, lentils, chickpeas and other legumes, the plant forms symbiotic relationships with nitrogen fixing bacteria, so in short, it can fix its own nitrogen from the atmosphere.

An ancient tree from India is now thriving in groves where citrus trees once flourished in Florida, and could help provide the nation with renewable energy.

This legume has superpowers: It's drought tolerant, pest resistant, nitrogen fixing, carbon sequestering, soil remediating, high-yielding and rich in protein. It can provide food and fuel, and combat climate change, all with a single pod. And Terviva wants to plant millions of them to feed billions.

The ultimate ‘climate-smart’ crop, nitrogen-fixing Pongamia trees produce significantly more biomass per acre than soybeans with a fraction of the inputs.

Terviva ranked #60 for the 2023 FoodTech 500, the world's first definitive list of AgriFoodTech innovators around the world.

With Mitsubishi Corporation’s partnership, Terviva marks a key milestone in the advancement of a pongamia tree-based business platform that sinks carbon, improves small-holder livelihoods, and creates a new source for biofuel and food.

According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized.

The connection between food security, food production and the climate crisis has become crystal clear. We know food systems are both major contributors to and impacted by climate change...

In celebration of Earth Month, PBFA looked to feature a member making tangible, innovative contributions to the field of sustainability. And by any measure, trailblazing start-up Terviva fits the bill...