PHILADELPHIA and EMERYVILLE, Calif., Aug. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --
FMC Corporation (NYSE: FMC), a leading agricultural sciences
company, and Zymergen, a science and material innovation company
focused on rethinking biology, today announced a new collaboration
focused on creating breakthrough crop protection solutions. FMC and
Zymergen will develop a new, and faster, natural products discovery
process that leads to the development of novel crop protection
solutions for growers around the world. Leveraging Zymergen's vast
molecular library—the largest metagenomic database in
the world—and deep expertise in synthetic biology, FMC
will help dramatically improve the rate of success in developing
innovative crop protection products.
"We look forward to working together with Zymergen to identify
new molecules in ways we have not been able to in the past. FMC has
an established and effective molecule discovery process that begins
with chemistry. Together, we have an unparalleled advantage to
quickly learn from nature and accelerate our product pipeline to
address customers' needs with precision," said Dr. Kathleen Shelton, vice president and chief
technology officer of FMC. "We're proud to work collaboratively
with leading companies like Zymergen as we enter a new era of
innovation, building upon the ingenuity that has long existed in
our R&D pipeline."
Changing consumer sentiment and increased regulatory scrutiny
have created opportunities to use technology in driving
sustainability. This collaboration will enhance both FMC and
Zymergen's investments in sustainable innovations that address
rising food needs for a growing global population.
FMC and Zymergen will target biochemical processes specific to
known pests and scale the production process for viable natural
product gene clusters. Harnessing Zymergen's proprietary library of
over one million gene clusters—by far the largest of
its kind—as well as the company's industry-leading
fermentation capabilities and bioinformatics experience, FMC will
provide criteria that reflect growers' most important needs for
novel modes of action to manage resistance. These selection
criteria will inform Zymergen's computational models and, in turn,
speed discovery of higher-performing crop protection solutions
based on nature.
"Zymergen's expertise in synthetic biology, automation, and
machine learning will complement FMC's deep understanding of
agriculture," said Zach Serber,
chief science officer and co-founder, Zymergen. "By partnering with
nature to discover and produce molecules, we can create
breakthrough solutions which address critical industry problems.
Together, our goal is to convert the complexity of nature to create
useful products that allow growers to better control pests and
diseases."
This collaboration builds on Zymergen's product portfolio across
applications, including agriculture, electronics and personal care.
Zymergen is already working with industry leaders across a range of
product areas to deliver innovations that help the grower, with a
focus on crop nutrition and protection. FMC is building an
ecosystem of partners to accelerate the speed of innovation to
address agriculture's most pressing challenges. FMC's R&D team
of more than 800 scientists and associates are guiding one of the
most robust discovery and development pipelines in the agricultural
industry, including the first novel herbicide mode of action in
over 30 years.
About FMC
FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides
innovative solutions to growers around the world with a robust
product portfolio fueled by a market-driven discovery and
development pipeline in crop protection, plant health, and
professional pest and turf management. This powerful combination of
advanced technologies includes leading insect control products
based on Rynaxypyr® and Cyazypyr® active ingredients; Authority®,
Boral®, Centium®, Command® and Gamit® branded herbicides; Talstar®
and Hero® branded insecticides; and flutriafol-based fungicides.
The FMC portfolio also includes biologicals such as Quartzo® and
Presence® bionematicides. FMC Corporation employs approximately
6,400 employees around the globe. To learn more, please visit
www.fmc.com.
FMC, the FMC logo, Rynaxypyr, Cyazypyr, Authority, Boral,
Centium, Command, Gamit, Talstar, Hero, Quartzo and Presence are
trademarks of FMC Corporation or an affiliate. Always read and
follow all label directions, restrictions and precautions for use.
Products listed here may not be registered for sale or use in all
states, countries or jurisdictions. Hero® insecticide is a
restricted use pesticide in the United
States.
The Company's investor relations website, located at
https://investors.fmc.com, should be considered as a recognized
channel of distribution, and the Company may periodically post
important information to the web site for investors, including
information that the Company may wish to disclose publicly for
purposes of complying with the federal securities laws. After
April 27, 2021, this type of
information will no longer be regularly provided by press release
but will continue to be posted on the investor relations
website.
About Zymergen
Zymergen is a science and material innovation company rethinking
biology and reimagining the world. A World Economic Forum Tech
Pioneer, Zymergen partners with nature to create never-before
imagined materials and products across industries – from
agriculture to electronics, consumer care to pharmaceuticals, and
more. The company creates sustainable materials that are in use
today, delivering value for Fortune 1000 companies with over
$1 billion worth of products using
Zymergen microbial innovations sold to date. At Zymergen, we make
tomorrow.
www.zymergen.com
Statement under the Safe Harbor Provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release
contains forward-looking statements, which are based on
management's current views and assumptions regarding future events,
future business conditions and the outlook for the company based on
currently available information. These statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may
cause actual results to be materially different from any results,
levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by any forward-looking statement. These factors
include, among other things, the risk factors and other cautionary
statements included within FMC's 2019 Form 10-K filed with the SEC
as well as other SEC filings and public communications. FMC
cautions readers not to place undue reliance on any such
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made.
Forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by the
above cautionary statement. FMC undertakes no obligation, and
specifically disclaims any duty, to update or revise any
forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances
arising after the date on which they were made, except as otherwise
required by law.
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SOURCE FMC Corporation