Ole Kristian Sivertsen

Ole Kristian Sivertsen joined Desert Control as CEO in 2019 to help scale the innovation of Liquid Natural Clay (LNC), a patented technology developed by Kristian P. Olesen and his son Ole Morten Olesen, building on technology used in the petroleum industry.

What is the problem?

Over 20% of the earth's fertile land is already degraded. Deserts are spreading so fast that global agriculture may only have 60 harvests left. 12 million hectares of fertile land perish to desertification annually according to United Nations. That is 2000 football fields of fertile soil turning to sand every hour. As this plays out, our global population is growing so fast that we will need more food in the next 40 years than the planet has produced in the last 500 years.

What is the Solution?

Desert Control has seemingly achieved the impossible by turning desert into fertile soil in just 7 hours. With previous methods, this process could take a whole decade. Desert Control’s process begins by analyzing the soil in the target area; then, the company brings in a mobile production unit that mixes just the right formulation of clay and minerals into a liquid that is then sprayed on the sand. The micro-clay allows the soil to retain water and introduces key nutrients. Within hours, a farmer can plant seeds and begin to grow crops. The process would then need to be repeated every 3-5 years; even so, the huge savings in water and fertilizer use make it both economically attractive for farmers and environmentally friendly. And it creates a totally fertile soil.

An issue for start-ups is often securing a scalable distribution. Desert Control has found its solution. Working with existing irrigation systems will allow Desert Control to expand its use faster and more efficiently than any other similar system. The company’s IPO of 20M € in 2021 proves that an ambition to change the world for the better can also be linked with financial results. The company has already had great success in the harsh conditions of the UAE and is enroute on making the earth green again.

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