As the construction industry faces growing pressure to reduce its environmental impact, innovation in material science is becoming critical to achieving climate goals. Traditional building materials such as cement and concrete contribute significantly to global carbon emissions, creating an urgent need for sustainable alternatives that can balance performance, scalability, and environmental responsibility.
At the forefront of this transformation is GreenJams, a company pioneering carbon-negative construction technologies through products like Agrocrete®️ and cement-free material platforms. By converting agricultural residues into high-performance construction materials, GreenJams is creating solutions that not only reduce emissions but also actively remove and store carbon within the built environment. Their approach combines mineralisation science, advanced binder chemistry, and circular economy principles to address challenges ranging from crop burning and air pollution to embodied carbon in infrastructure.
In this conversation, Tarun Jami, Founder of GreenJams, explains the science behind Agrocrete®️, the role of carbon-negative materials in sustainable construction, and how emerging technologies could redefine the future of climate-positive infrastructure. He also discusses the barriers to scaling these innovations and why transparency, measurement, and scientific validation are essential in building trust within the green construction ecosystem.
1. Agrocrete®️ is known for being carbon-negative can you break down the science behind how it captures and locks carbon?
Agrocrete®️ works on a principle called mineralisation. We take agricultural fibres—such as crop residues that have already absorbed CO₂ during plant growth, and embed them into a mineral-activated matrix.
Over time, these fibres undergo chemical stabilisation and effectively become part of the mineral structure, similar to fossilisation. This prevents the biogenic carbon from re-entering the atmosphere.
The result is a material with a net-negative carbon footprint (~–0.14 kgCO₂/kg). Unlike offsets, this is physical carbon storage inside the building material itself, with permanence lasting for the life of the structure.
2. How does upcycling crop residues into construction materials help address both air pollution and climate change simultaneously?
Crop residue burning is one of the largest contributors to seasonal air pollution in India. At the same time, those residues are carbon-rich biomass. By converting these residues into construction materials like Agrocrete®️, we create an alternative value chain where waste becomes a productive industrial input. This does two things simultaneously:
- Prevents open burning, reducing particulate pollution and local air quality issues,
- Locks the carbon into long-life materials, contributing to climate mitigation.
It’s a rare case where a single intervention addresses both local pollution and global emissions.
3. Compared to traditional bricks or cement, what performance advantages does Agrocrete®️ offer?
Agrocrete®️ is designed to compete on performance, not just sustainability.
-Strength: Meets structural requirements for masonry applications and is engineered for consistent performance.
-Thermal insulation: Offers ~3.5× higher insulation compared to conventional concrete blocks, reducing heat ingress.
-Durability: Low water absorption and stable long-term performance due to fibre mineralisation.
The key is that these benefits come without requiring changes in construction practices, making it viable for real-world deployment.
4. GreenJams recently introduced cement-free platforms—how do such advancements redefine infrastructure?
The biggest shift is at the binder level.
Infrastructure today is built on clinker-based cement, which contributes 7–8% of global CO₂ emissions. Platforms like our BINDR™️ mineral-activated binder eliminate clinker and replace it with alternative chemistry based on industrial minerals.
This allows the creation of cement-free construction systems such as Novastone™️, delivering up to 80% lower embodied carbon while remaining cost-competitive.
This is not an incremental improvement it is a redefinition of how construction materials are designed and manufactured.
5. What are the biggest technological barriers in scaling carbon-negative materials?
The challenges are less about core science today and more about systems integration:
- Supply chain consistency for alternative raw materials,
- Standardisation and codes that are still built around traditional materials,
- Manufacturing scale-up while maintaining quality and repeatability,
- Market trust, especially in a sector that is risk-averse.
Solving these requires not just materials innovation, but ecosystem-level change across manufacturing, regulation, and adoption.
6. How do you ensure scientific validation and credibility behind your sustainability claims?
Credibility comes from measurement and third-party validation.
We rely on Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) and publish Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) where applicable. Our products are also tested for mechanical and durability performance through recognised institutions.
For us, sustainability is not a narrative—it is a quantified metric. Claims must be measurable, comparable, and verifiable.
This is especially important in a market where greenwashing is common. The only way to counter that is with transparent data and independent validation.
7. What emerging technologies or materials will accelerate climate-positive construction?
Three areas are particularly promising:
- Advanced binder chemistries that eliminate clinker,
- Carbon-negative material systems that integrate biomass and mineralisation,
- MRV frameworks (Monitoring, Reporting, Verification) that allow carbon performance to be measured and monetised.
The future will not just be about reducing emissions—it will be about integrating carbon removal into the fabric of buildings, and linking materials directly with climate finance.
