OVERCOMING THE FERTILIZER CRISIS:
ALTERNATIVES, USAGE, AND POLICY
with Chris Abbott, Rattan Lal & Bob Quinn
Chris Abbott
Chief Executive Officer, Pivot Bio
Chris Abbott is Chief Executive Officer of Pivot Bio, one of the world’s leading agtech companies delivering patented crop nutrition technologies. As the company’s first non-founder CEO, Abbott is at the helm of a company that has rapidly scaled its products across more than 20 million acres and is celebrating 15 years of innovation and impact in agriculture.
Currently available across North America and expanding globally, including into Brazil, Canada and Africa, Pivot Bio’s products represent a breakthrough innovation and one of agriculture’s most promising technology solutions. The company has been recognized three times by TIME magazine on its annual Best Inventions list, by Fast Company on its World Changing Ideas and World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies lists, by CNBC on its Disruptor 50 list of private companies, by Fortune on its Impact 20 list, and by MIT Technology Review as one of 15 Climate Tech Companies to Watch.
Abbott has helped accelerate Pivot Bio’s growth, innovation pipeline and global expansion while strengthening its position as a trusted partner to farmers. He also led the establishment of the company’s Centers of Excellence in St. Louis and its global headquarters in the Twin Cities, positioning Pivot Bio closer to customers, innovation partners and the future of ag innovation. Abbott was recognized as a Twin Cities Business 40 Under 40 honoree for his leadership and impact across the agriculture and business sectors.
Widely recognized as an emerging voice at the intersection of agriculture, technology and innovation, Abbott has spoken at leading global forums including the World Economic Forum Annual, World Agri- Tech Innovation Summit and the World Food Prize Borlaug Dialogue. He has been featured on CNBC, CNN, ABC Global News and in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times among others for his leadership in the fertilizer and commodity markets. He is a passionate advocate for farmers and rural communities and frequently speaks about agriculture’s critical role in food security, energy resilience and the industry.
Before joining Pivot Bio in 2023, Abbott was Co-Head of Conti Ventures at Continental Grain Company, where he helped build one of the industry’s leading investment portfolios across agriculture and food technology. Throughout his career, he has invested in and advised companies spanning biologicals, digital agriculture, processing, logistics, food ingredients and consumer brands. Earlier in his career, he held investment and capital markets roles at Piper Sandler, EcoAlpha Asset Management and Craig-Hallum Capital Group.
As an advocate for creating programs to support youth, Chris serves on the board of InnerCity Tennis. He is a Farm Foundation fellow, and has served on numerous company boards, and is a current member of the Pivot Bio Board of Directors. Chris holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota.
Rattan Lal
Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science, Director of the CFAES Rattan Lal Center for Carbon Management and Sequestration, The Ohio State University
Rattan Lal, Ph.D., is a Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science and Director of the CFAES Rattan Lal Center for Carbon Management and Sequestration at The Ohio State University, as well as an Adjunct Professor of University of Iceland and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), India. He received a B.S. from Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, India (1963); M.S. from Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India (1965); and Ph.D. from the Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio (1968).
He has authored/co-authored over 1100 refereed journal articles and more than 575 book chapters, has written and edited/co-edited more than 100 books. He was included in the Thomson Reuters list of the World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds (2014-2016), and he is among Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers in Agriculture (2014-2022). He was ranked #1 globally and in the U.S. among Agricultural Scientists (Plant Scientists and Agronomists) of the world by Research.com (2023).
He is Chair in Soil Science and Goodwill Ambassador for Sustainability Issues for the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA). He currently serves as a member of the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD) in the Department of Agriculture and as Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board for the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) in the Department of Defense. Dr. Lal is laureate of the GCHERA World Agriculture Prize (2018), Glinka World Soil Prize (2018), Japan Prize (2019), U.S. Awasthi IFFCO Prize (2019), Arrell Global Food Innovation Award (2020), World Food Prize (2020), India’s Padma Shri Award (2021), and the Mahatma Ghandi Award for Environmental Protection (2022).
Bob Quinn
Director, The Quinn Initiative
Bob Quinn is a leading green businessman, with successful ventures in both organic agriculture and renewable energy. Raised on a 2,400 acre wheat and cattle ranch in Montana, Quinn earned a Ph.D. in plant biochemistry at UC Davis before coming home to farm in 1978. In 1986, he planted his first organic crop, and by 1989, he had converted his entire farm. He served on the first National Organic Standards Board, which spurred the creation of the USDA's National Organic Program, and has been recognized with the Montana Organic Association Lifetime of Service Award, The Organic Trade
Association Organic Leadership Award, and Rodale Institute's Organic Pioneer Award. In 2023 he donated 700 acres of his farm to create a regenerative organic research, education and health institute. The vision and mission of Quinn Institute is “Healing the Earth by Growing Food as Medicine”.