AirX Carbon – Action on Poverty

Investing in Impact

P4G awarded the partnership a grant of US $350,000.  

Traditional pallet manufacturing depends on virgin wood or plastic—both of which contribute significantly to deforestation, carbon emissions, and environmental waste. Wooden pallets are subject to volatile lumber prices and pose contamination risks due to their porous structure, while plastic pallets often end up in landfills. 

AirX Carbon, a Vietnam-based startup, converts biomass waste into durable, hygienic and stackable pallets that meet the global standards of food, beverage and manufacturing industries. 

Vietnam generates nearly 100 million tons of agricultural byproducts annually. Much of this biomass is burned or dumped, creating environmental and public health burdens. Through the NetZero Pallet, AirX Carbon offered a scalable, low-carbon, circular economy solution by sourcing feedstock such as coconut husks—an abundant, renewable material from a climate-adaptive crop that also functions as a natural carbon sink. 

Key achievements during the P4G funding period between 2024 and 2026:

• More than US $1.2 million generated in gross revenue
• More than 6,300 metric tons of CO2 emissions avoided based on an independently verified lifecycle assessment
• More than 1,700 tons of waste upcycled
• Sold more than 37,000 NetZero Pallets
• Signed two agreements that represents a potential demand of more than 2 million pallets in 2027 

To position itself for scaling, AirX focused on strengthening its supply chain and production abilities, boosting visibility, and finalizing investment materials. 

As part of strengthening the supply chain and production, AirX tested and validated multiple agriwaste materials as feedstock including coconut husk, rice husk, bagasse and broken wood pallets. This allowed the company to use diverse agricultural byproducts, significantly improving its ability to scale production. To secure consistent access to raw materials, AirX Carbon also established long-term agreements with regional suppliers, offering farmers a new income stream from otherwise discarded materials. 

The business tested new weather-resistant pallets and developed two new molds that could stand up to high loading conditions and forklifts, properties that are necessary for FMCG logistics. AirX also set up its factory in Vietnam’s Binh Duong province, and procured the staff and machinery required for operations. The factory has an annual production capacity of 300,000 pallets. 

Certifications strengthen product credibility and open international markets. AirX successfully completed certifications and tests including ISO 9001: 2015, ISO 14001:2015, Cold temperate and flammability tests, and water absorption tests among others. 

AirX strengthened its investment readiness by restructuring the company’s corporate and investment framework, including setting up an entity in Singapore to facilitate easier access to venture capital and global expansion. The startup prepared a suite of investment materials and engaged with more than 27 investors and secured more than $600,000 in non-commercial funding. AirX Carbon also adopted a new Customer Relationship Management system to improve sales management, forecasting and financial transparency to give greater confidence to investors. 

AirX Carbon continued to build the brand and visibility of NetZero Pallet through digital marketing campaigns and participation in key industry events. The startup showcased its product as notable global events including the 2025 P4G Vietnam Summit, Bing Duong Manufacturing Trade Fair, Vietnam Innovation Summit 2025, Vietnam International Pepper and Spice Outlook 2025, ESG Investor Conference, Asian Circular Economy Forum 2025 and ASEAN Business and Investment Summit 2025. These engagement efforts resulted in AirX Carbon’s client list growing from 17 to almost 115 in less than a year. Notable domestic and international clients include Coca Cola Refreshments, Olam, NPC Korea, Betrimax and others. 

AirX Carbon received multiple national and international awards including Startup Wheel, top 10 ESG Initiatives in Vietnam, ASEAN Startup Award, 100+ Accelerator, Sustainable Future Award, Business Innovation Award by the Ministry of Science and Technology in Vietnam, and UNDP and the Australian Government BPP program, Ho Chi Minh City’s Innovation Award, WTO’s Small Business Champion and Innovation for Nature (I4N) Award. 

Top Lessons Learned:

• B2B adoption in industrial supply chains requires long validation cycles. Large buyers typically start with pilot orders before committed to larger agreements, reinforcing the importance of testing, certification and customization to build trust.
• Investment readiness requires strong governance and impact evidence. Audited financial statements, verified LCA results, ESG reports and complete data room significantly improved credibility with investors.
• Policy clarity is important for scaling solutions. Most existing policies are for wood or plastic pellets and AirX Carbon worked with P4G’s National Platform in Vietnam to share regulatory recommendations and technical standards to accelerate the adoption of low carbon pallet alternatives. 

AirX Carbon produced two knowledge products during the P4G grant period: 

• A case study on its business model of valorizing agricultural waste into a logistics solution 
• A policy brief detailing recommendations to scale agri-waste based pallet solutions

Action on Poverty assisted AirX Carbon in developing a robust Environmental–Social–Governance (ESG) framework and investor strategy to scale climate impact. 

The partnership comprised AirX Carbon (Lead Business Partner) and Action on Poverty (Lead Administrative Partner)