In early March 2026, experts from industry, technology, finance and academia from around the world gathered in London for the inaugural Biochar Commercialization Summit. The aim of this first conference was to find ways to expand the production and application of biochar throughout the world.

Dr. Sebastian Kipp represented Klasmann-Deilmann at the event and participated in the opening panel discussion on the conditions companies must meet to use biochar on a larger scale.

Biochar as a sustainable carbon sequestration component
Biochar is considered a promising technology for permanent carbon sequestration. While many climate strategies focus on reducing emissions, biochar can remove CO₂ from the atmosphere in the long term.

However, scaling up this technology is complex. The value chain involves many actors, including biochar producers, energy companies, project promoters and buyers of CO₂ certificates.

The crucial factor is to ensure that the biochar actually ends up in a sustainable carbon sink. CO₂ certificates can only be created and traded when this condition is met.

© Klasmann-Deilmann

Horticulture as a previously underestimated player
Biochar is mainly considered in the context of agriculture in many discussions. Professional horticulture has played a much smaller role in the perception of the industry until now. This is precisely what Klasmann-Deilmann brought to the summit with a new perspective.

“We are one of the few companies that can use biochar functionally, that is, as a component of growth media,” explains Sebastian Kipp. “Through our value chain, the biochar eventually ends up in the soil, where it is bound for the long term.”

High interest among potential customers
The perspective of an industrial user was met with great interest by the participants of the summit. “After explaining the quantities that could theoretically be used by root, there was a lot of interest,” reports Sebastian Kipp. Numerous discussions with producers and project developers revealed that reliable contractors are essential for the establishment of new production capacities.

Raw materials and global supply chains
Another main topic of the conference was the identification of suitable biogenic raw materials for biochar production. Although wood chips are commonly used today, they are quite expensive.

As a result, the discussion about the use of biogenic waste, which has not been widely used until now, has increased. Large quantities of this type of biomass are available, especially in regions such as Africa and India. Greater use of these resources can reduce production costs in the long term and facilitate the development of new international production structures.

Options for use in growth media
Klasmann-Deilmann is working to further expand the use of biochar in growth media. Trials are currently underway using larger amounts of TerraCoal in young plant growth media. At the same time, the supplier network is being expanded, wherever possible, to establish stable regional supply chains in the long term.

The discussions in London revealed that gardening can play an important role in the future biochar value chain. Their use in growth media establishes a link between biochar production and agricultural application, providing a complementary method of long-term carbon sequestration.

For more information:
Klasmann-Deilmann Benelux
(email protected)
www.klasmann-deilmann.com

The proponent filed a motion to potentially revive the legislation for future reconsideration.

By: Barbara Hoberock, Oklahoma Voice

Oklahoma House lawmakers on Thursday defeated a measure that would have given employers more authority to fire individuals for using medical marijuana.

Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, the author, said House Bill 3127 would not force employers to do anything, but would give them discretion to outlaw classify additional jobs as “safety sensitive.” State laws allow companies to ban marijuana use by employees in “safety-sensitive” jobs based on drug testing.

Current law classifies “safety-sensitive jobs” as those that require operating vehicles, machinery and power tools, carrying a firearm, and providing direct care to patients or children, among others.

West said that if a person tests positive for what the bill says, they will be out of a job.

He said he would be surprised if employers started listing all jobs as “security sensitive.”

If all deployed businesses classified every job as “security sensitive,” they wouldn’t be able to find people to hire, West said.

State records show more than 315,000 residents hold licenses for medical marijuana.

Critics cited concerns about legality and the impact on workers who have a doctor’s prescription to legally use the drug. They argued that the current law contains broad categories for “security-sensitive” jobs and questioned the need to expand it.

Rep. Chris Kannady, R-Oklahoma City, said marijuana can stay in a person’s system for weeks.

Rep. Erick Harris, R-Edmond, said under the measure, he could fire his aide for using medical marijuana.

West said the aide could not be fired for having a medical marijuana card, but could be terminated if the employer classified the position as “safety sensitive” and the employee in that position tested positive for marijuana.

Although measure failed, West warned he may bring the measure back for another vote at a future legislative session.

This story was first published by the Oklahoma Voice.

user photo Brian Shamblen.

It takes a minute to adjust your eyes to Joe Chierak and Mike Beddoe in hats through the greenhouse doors of NC State University’s Plant Sciences Building.

It’s so bright there’s a sunglasses case in the entryway.

“When the sun shines on the white floor, it’s like being blinded by snow,” says Beddoe.

The 24-foot-tall glass and steel behemoth that sits atop the Centennial Campus building might look like an ordinary greenhouse.

© NC State UniversityThe 10,000-square-foot Plant Sciences Building controlled-environment laboratory has 11 greenhouse bays (top left) that provide fully conditioned, glass-bottom growth environments for research.

But inside computer-controlled facilities, researchers work year-round to tackle the biggest challenges farmers face from disease, pests and extreme weather.

Plants for dozens of changing research projects are grown at any given time, all with different needs, requirements, growing seasons, and Chiera and Beddoe are tasked with overseeing them.

“We serve the entire campus,” says Chiera.

Increasing innovation
Researchers in one room have rows of blue-green plants. They are mostly eucalyptus© NC State University Widely planted hardwood trees throughout the world.

By editing specific genes in eucalyptus, NC State researchers like forestry professor Jack Wang and genome editing expert Rodolphe Barrangou are developing trees to make paper and other wood products, reducing emissions and promoting the sustainability of paper mills.

In another room, they set up chain-like runners of hanging strawberry plant racks, which can be used to root and grow more strawberries.

Associate Professor of Horticultural Sciences Mark Hoffmann is researching new ways to propagate strawberry plants to minimize the spread of pathogens before they are shipped from nurseries to growers.

Growing plants for this job requires precise control of light, humidity and other conditions.

Controlled environments for research accuracy
Shouting over the hum of fans, sprinklers and other equipment, Beddoe leads her down the hall to a back office.

© NC State UniversityEach greenhouse bay is individually monitored, helping to ensure that experiments meet the researchers’ exacting standards. Pictured: Mike Beddoe.

“This is the brains of the entire greenhouse,” Beddoe says, tapping into a control system that allows the researchers to adjust the environment in each room to their needs.

© NC State UniversityThe Plant Sciences building has 25 growing chambers of various sizes where plants are grown for food, fiber and even erosion control.

The facility includes 11 independently controlled greenhouse rooms spanning more than 10,000 square feet, as well as 25 plant growth chambers.

Sensors in each room continuously monitor temperature, soil moisture, CO2 concentration and more.

The data is then sent to a central computer, where it is analyzed and compared to optimal standards before issuing commands to the system, such as adjusting shade screens or turning on misters. Watering schedules are also programmed.

“We try to automate everything,” says Beddoe.

Safety first
Passing pots and earthenware, Chiera leads to one of the most unique rooms on the fifth floor.

The biocontainment greenhouse is one of the few facilities nationwide designed to safely screen for agricultural pests and pathogens.

Every year, farmers around the world lose up to 40% of their crops to pests and diseases.

As new threats continue to emerge that could threaten global food security, NC State is not taking any chances.

So they have converted one wing into a specialized high-capacity facility known as a biosafety level 3 laboratory.

Research here could be used to test treatments for crop diseases, for example, or to develop fruit and vegetables with greater resistance to insect pests.

The space itself is only accessible to credentialed staff, who work under the watchful eye of security cameras.

Chiera walks through the automatically closing doors and the researcher dons gowns, gloves, face shields and other protective gear before entering the lab.

What comes here, stays here
From air and water handling to waste disposal, it’s designed to ensure that what comes here stays here.

All water discharged from the BSL-3 greenhouse is run down pipes and boiled before leaving the facility.

Solid waste is treated in a special oven called an autoclave, which uses steam and pressure to ensure that any microbes are dead.

Air is also designed for safety.

A negative pressure ventilation system creates a flow of air in a direction to prevent anything in the air from escaping, and all the exhausted air is filtered out.

“So if we’re dealing with a pathogenic plant that produces spores, for example, it will trap them and not release them,” says Chiera.

Supporting diverse research in the face of tough challenges
Back in the main corridor, Chiera and Beddoe make their way through the hall to their next meeting, passing thousands of green plants along the way.

© NC State UniversityAlex Woodley (left) and Raine Lookabill study greenhouse gas emissions from greenhouse soils as part of efforts to find ways to reduce them and mitigate their effects.

Back in the main corridor, Chiera and Beddoe make their way through the hall to their next meeting, passing thousands of green plants along the way.

In one room, tests are being done on the sweet potato. Electrical and Computer Engineering Professor Wenye Wang and his team are developing ways to help farmers monitor starchy and swollen roots as they grow underground, using low-cost Wi-Fi signals (PDF) instead of expensive buried sensors.

in another room, NC State Professor Dorith Rotenberg, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, is growing corn. Plants will eventually become dinner for insects, such as plant eaters and aphids, to better understand how these insects spread viruses that can stunt growth and reduce yield in one of the world’s largest crops.

A fan favorite
Beddoe stops in front of a room at the end of the corridor. “This is my favorite bay,” he says.

© NC State UniversityGrayson Cothran tends plants in a popular greenhouse bay where students have the opportunity to care for various plants and learn about greenhouse operations.

Inside, there are soybeans and banana plants basking in the sun, cotton plants with their hibiscus-like blooms, as well as a genetically engineered petunia that looks like an ordinary white flower during the day but glows at night using bioluminescent mushroom genes.

“These plants are mostly for our students,” explained Beddoe. “So they can learn different ways to water and breed and things like that.”

Always called
Beddoe will return here before heading home as part of his twice-daily inspections.

Because keeping the greenhouse running requires a lot of hands-on work.

“One of us is always on call,” says Beddoe, whose phone buzzes on evenings and weekends if something needs attention.

“Plants don’t take vacations,” he added.

Source: NC State University