Homes from grass? Triangle startup inks deal with D.R. Horton

Affordable homes built out of grass? It’s about to become a reality through a Triangle area startup and its new partnership with a major homebuilder.

Plantd, which recently moved into an 80,000-square-foot production facility in Oxford, makes construction materials derived from grass. And it just signed its first major partnership with homebuilder D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI).

Co-founder Josh Dorfman called the deal “validating” for the materials his firm has been developing as a carbon-friendly alternative to wood.  

“We’re in a fortunate position where it’s not – build it and hopefully they will come,” he said. “In this respect, they’ve come, and they’ve said here’s an order. ... We know where those first products are going and we know there’s now a path to make sure they’re going into homes.”

It’s particularly challenging for Plantd because it’s doing something new in an established industry. Materials need to last for a long time – and it can be challenging to get builders to take on something new, however more sustainable it may be.

With the D.R. Horton deal, Plantd will be launching with the builder. Its first 250,000 panels will go to D.R. Horton before the company sells with other builders.

Dorfman said conversations are ongoing with other builders, and that the D.R. Horton deal will help “show the industry that our materials are viable and perform really well in real world conditions.”

Plantd did not release the financial details of the deal.

The company has grown to 50 employees – and will be scaling up to meet DR Horton’s demand, Dorfman said.

D.R. Horton is purchasing structural panels for wall sheathing and roof decking. The panels will be installed in more than 1,000 new single-family homes, starting in North Carolina.

Plantd has developed a grass-based alternative to the typically wood-based Oriented Strand Board (OSB). Zero trees are cut down in their production, according to the company.

In a press release, Mike Murray, co-COO of D.R. Horton, said the materials are “the right solution at the right time.”

"This relationship enhances our capabilities to offer new buyers homes that are affordable, durable and sustainable,” Murray said.

While some panels will be installed in Durham this summer, full production and delivery begins in 2024, according to the companies.

The idea for Plantd, which recently closed on $13.6 million, emerged out of a furniture manufacturing startup Dorfman cofounded in Asheville four years ago. The firm used sustainable materials and processes. Dorfman found it was hard to source premium plywood cheaply – particularly when he was looking for options with less environmental impact. Dorfman soon teamed up with Huade Tan, an entrepreneur who had been developing sustainable climbing hardware. Their combined efforts would became Plantd, which opened a prototype lab in 2021.