Terra Oleo is a Singapore-based startup developing microbes that transform agricultural waste into a variety of oils and derivatives as alternatives to palm oil. The company began in 2022 when co-founders Shen Ming Lee and Boon Uranukul combined Lee's industry connections with Uranukul's MIT-developed microbial technology. Terra Oleo operated in stealth for nearly two years and secured $3.1 million from investors including ADB Ventures, Better Bite Ventures, Elev8.vc, The Radical Fund, and a strategic palm-oil-industry investor. The founders are part of the Breakthrough Energy Fellows. The team mapped palm oil derivatives to prioritize high-value, technically tractable targets.
""I grew up in the conventional palm oil industry," Lee told TechCrunch. "My family's business is one of the top producers in the palm oil space. And so I grew up a little bit - I have to admit -ashamed of what my family does.""
""I really had this desire to build something that was maybe going to build on my family's legacy, but in a way that was more in line with my values as a Gen Z, sustainability-leading person," Lee said. "We got thinking about what we could do differently, matching his expertise with my connections and strategic network.""
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