Mosan Circular System

Transforming waste into healthy soil.

The Mosan Circular System decontaminates the environment and transforms organic waste streams and biomass — dried sludge, coconut shells and coffee pulp— into enriched biochar substrates that rebuild degraded soils, increase biodiversity, and permanently store carbon. Climate-positive circular systems, starting in Guatemala.

Backed by science and partnership
ETH Zurich·ZHAW Zurich·UC Davis·Ministry of Agriculture (MAGA)·AMSCLAE
Our mission

We are determined to reduce contamination, close nutrient cycles, and enable regeneration — by capturing nutrients where they are harmful, and recovering them as organic inputs for agriculture. We co-create culturally appropriate, circular, and climate-positive systems that promote health, avoid contamination, store CO₂, and restore soil for long-term resilience.

Why this matters

Across Guatemala, unmanaged organic waste is contaminating the soils and water that farmers and communities depend on. Wastewater treatment plants generate approximately 50,000 tonnes of sewage sludge each year, most of which is disposed of unsafely in landfills. Agricultural residues often follow a similar path: left unmanaged, burned, or treated as waste instead of returned to the land.

At the same time, soil depletion, overuse of agrochemicals and intensifying climate stress are increasing crop disease, reducing yields, and weakening farmer resilience in one of the countries most exposed globally to climate-related disasters.

Closing the loop.

We transform organic residues that would otherwise contaminate the environment into biochar-based soil inputs, enrich them into regenerative substrates, and return them safely to the soil — reducing contamination risk, restoring soil fertility, and helping build more resilient, lower-carbon value chains.

The ecosystem.

We implement this work through the Mosan Circular System: a mission-driven consortium that brings together nonprofit partners, commercial innovation and strategic partnerships. By bringing together complementary organizations under one shared mission, we connect environmental protection, community engagement, resource recovery and regenerative agriculture into a single integrated system designed for long-term impact.

Proven results
6+ years
of pyrolysis R&D and field trials
Up to 60%
stable carbon — permanent sequestration in soil
Up to 400%
increase in soil moisture retention
37%
decrease in cost of production of seedlings (coffee trial)
30%
increase of seedlings root growth
How it works

From harmful waste to regenerated land

1

Capture waste where it’s harmful.

Sewage sludge, coffee pulp, coconut husks — diverted from landfills, rivers, and lakes.

2

Transform it through safe processing.

Waste is converted through high-temperature pyrolysis into safe, high-nutrient biochar and further enriched

3

Regenerate soil and decarbonize supply chains.

Biochar substrates help to restore fertility and resilience; buyers benefit from low-carbon supply.

“All biochar substrates increased moisture retention by over 25%.”“37% decrease in production cost in nursery trials.”“39% increase in coffee plant growth after one year.”

— validated with the Ministry of Agriculture of Guatemala and ETH Zurich.

By 2030 annually 2,370 tonnes of waste will be treated, 1,170 tonnes of biochar substrate produced, 2,270 tonnes of CO₂e – Greenhouse gas emissions avoided and 234 tonnes CO₂e – Carbon permanently sequestered in soils.

Help us decontaminate and regenerate the environment, starting in Guatemala.

Whether you’re a farmer, a cooperative, a finca owner, a coffee buyer, a research partner, or an impact investor, there’s a way to be part of the loop.