SOLASTA Bio, a leading agri-biotech company specialising in the
next generation of green insecticides, has completed an
oversubscribed $14 million Series A funding round to accelerate the
development of its unique peptide-based, nature-inspired
bioinsecticides – the first of their kind to be developed
worldwide.
The investment round was led by Forbion via its BioEconomy fund
strategy, with co-lead investment from agricultural strategics FMC
Ventures (FMC Corporation) and Corteva Catalyst (Corteva, Inc.).
Participation from existing investors included Cavallo Ventures
(Wilbur-Ellis), Rubio Impact Ventures, Scottish Enterprise, UKi2S,
SIS Ventures and University of Glasgow, bringing the total raised
to date to $19 million. In the context of this round Joy Faucher
from Forbion will join the company’s board of directors.
Series A funding follows a successful 2023
trials season in which SOLASTA Bio’s unique insect control agents
demonstrated efficacy on par or better than commercial standards
across 20+ field trials on multiple crops in Europe, the UK and
US.
Established in 2021, Glasgow-based SOLASTA Bio has developed the
world's first technology platform for creating insect control
agents that are nature-inspired rather than selected from a
synthetic chemistry library. As well as meeting the efficacy
standards of current chemicals on the market, these environmentally
friendly agents address a growing global need for effective crop
protection by selectively targeting insect pests while protecting
beneficial pollinators such as bees. SOLASTA Bio’s platform can be
mobilised for any pest of interest, across both crop and non-crop
applications such as stored grain.
With the investment round secured, SOLASTA Bio will continue to
advance its technology platform and pipeline of insect control
agents, targeting a $27bn annual market opportunity¹. In parallel,
the business will continue to build out its US operations, having
already established a base in North Carolina, expand its real-world
field trials across key geographies, scale-up its biomanufacturing
capabilities and further develop strategic opportunities including
applications beyond crop use.
The company is targeting market entry as early as 2027 – at
least half the time traditionally taken by synthetic pest control
products - demonstrating a significant advantage of the platform
technology.
SOLASTA Bio is co-founded by CEO Shireen Davies and CSO Prof.
Julian Dow and brings together a leadership team of technical and
agrochemical industry specialists including Daphne Preuss, Paula
Pinto, David Armour and Rob Wylie.
With the urgent need to protect pollinators and wildlife, while
boosting agricultural productivity, SOLASTA Bio aims to play a
leading role in the transition toward sustainable crop protection.
The global insecticides market is currently dominated by synthetic
chemicals accounting for 94% of insect control solutions¹. While
75% of food crops are dependent on pollinator insects, other
insects cause enormous social, health and economic damage
accounting for at least $70 billion in US crop losses alone.
However, the insecticides market is under increasing pressure from
widespread insect resistance, lack of species specificity,
increasing regulatory controls and consumer preferences for
non-chemical residues.
Shireen Davies PhD, FRSE, CEO and co-founder, SOLASTA
Bio, commented:
“SOLASTA Bio has come a long way since we set out on this
journey 3 years ago. Having established operations in the UK and
US, we’ve now got an international team with outstanding
competencies in technology and agribusiness and, importantly, we
have developed our unique technology platform to address grower
pain points. The results of our field trials have been hugely
encouraging, demonstrating high efficacy of biopeptides against
target insect pests, as effective or better than standard
insecticides. With Series A now secured, it’s time for SOLASTA Bio
to kick on to the next level and successfully hit our targets for
commercialisation.”
Joy Faucher, Partner at Forbion
BioEconomy, commented:
“As traditional insect control agents struggle with resistance
and impact to biodiversity, SOLASTA is poised to revolutionise the
crop protection market at a critical time, with a cost-effective,
sustainable and high-efficacy alternative that can be adopted
seamlessly by farmers. The team’s deep expertise in insect
neuropeptide modalities, their differentiated tech platform and
proven real-world data provide a unique position to launch a series
of first-in-class products that can redefine the agriculture
industry.”
Mark Brooks, Managing Director, FMC
Ventures, commented:
“SOLASTA’s nature-inspired approach to insect control is a game
changer in crop protection. Their approach addresses the critical
issue of insect resistance while also supporting the goal of
preserving pollinators and biodiversity. We have been in contact
with SOLASTA for a long time, assessing their potential to benefit
crop protection. FMC Ventures is proud to co-lead this funding
round and accelerate progress towards more sustainable inputs in
crop protection.”
Tom Greene, Senior Director and Global Leader, Corteva
Catalyst, commented:
“SOLASTA is a critical player in the rapidly expanding market
for nature-inspired crop health products – particularly in the
peptide technology space. They are driving the type of sustainable
innovation necessary to advance the next generation of biological
and naturally inspired crop protection technologies, and Corteva
Catalyst is pleased to stand alongside SOLASTA as a co-lead
investor in this funding round.”
For further information please contact: Harry
Hussain at Frame on +447525 903588 or
harry.hussain@framecreates.co.uk
Notes to editors:
- Verified Market Research: Global
Insecticides Market Size By Type (Organophosphate, Carbamates), By
End-User (Agriculture, Medicine), By Geographic Scope And Forecast
Report ID: 22453
About ForbionForbion is a leading global
venture capital firm with deep expertise in Europe and offices in
Naarden, The Netherlands, Munich, Germany and Boston, USA. Forbion
invests in innovative biotech companies, managing €3.2 billion
across multiple fund strategies that cover all stages of (bio-)
pharmaceutical drug development. In addition, Forbion leverages its
biotech expertise beyond human health to address ‘planetary health’
challenges through its BioEconomy fund strategy, which invests in
companies developing sustainable solutions in food, agriculture,
materials, and environmental technologies. Forbion’s team consists
of over 30 investment professionals that have built an impressive
performance track record since the late nineties with investments
in over 110 companies across 9 funds. Forbion’s record of sourcing,
building and guiding life sciences companies has resulted in many
approved breakthrough therapies and valuable exits. Forbion
typically selects impactful investments that will positively affect
the health and well-being of people and the planet, as well as meet
its financial return objectives. The firm is a signatory to the
United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment. Forbion
operates a joint venture with BGV, the manager of seed and
early-stage funds, especially focused on Benelux and Germany.
FMC Ventures is the corporate venture capital
arm of FMC Corporation, a global agricultural sciences company
dedicated to helping growers produce food, feed, fiber and fuel for
an expanding world population. FMC is committed to discovering new
herbicide, insecticide, and fungicide active ingredients, product
formulations and pioneering technologies that are consistently
better for the planet. Established in 2020, FMC Ventures invests
globally in early-stage startup companies developing cutting-edge
technologies that could reshape the future of agriculture. With a
focus on innovations such as artificial intelligence, genomics,
robotics, biologicals and agri-fintech, FMC Ventures identifies and
supports startups that can deliver profitability for growers and a
more sustainable future.
For more information about FMC Ventures, visit:
www.fmc.com/en/fmc-ventures
About Corteva CatalystCorteva Catalyst is an
investment and partnership platform dedicated to accelerating the
development of technologies that enable farmers around the world to
sustainably produce more food, feed and fuel. As part of Corteva,
Inc., a leading global agriculture company, Corteva Catalyst draws
on world-class capabilities to access and bring to market the next
generation of agricultural innovations that advance the company’s
R&D priorities and drive value creation with a clear focus on
translating innovation into impact for our growers. The Corteva
Catalyst investment in SOLASTA Bio was advised by Ducera Growth
Ventures.
About Scottish EnterpriseScottish Enterprise
(SE) is Scotland’s national economic development agency and a
non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It
supports businesses to innovate and scale to transform the Scottish
economy by focusing on new market opportunities through targeted
investment, innovation and internationalisation.
About UKI2SUK Innovation and Science Seed Fund
(UKI2S, “The Fund”) is an early-stage investment fund backed by UK
Research and Innovation (“UKRI”), Defence Science and Technology
Laboratory (“Dstl”), the Department of Business, Energy and
Industrial Strategy (“BEIS”) (through the Government Office for
Technology Transfer (“GOTT”)), the UK Atomic Energy Authority
(“UKAEA”) and other public bodies (“The Fund Partners”).The Fund
supports the most ambitious UK innovators at seed and beyond to
facilitate sustainable growth, enhance the health and security of
society, improve productivity, and deliver economic gains from the
UK’s publicly funded intellectual assets. UKI2S is managed by
Future Planet Capital (Ventures) Ltd, which is part of the Future
Planet Capital Group (“FPC”).
About SIS VenturesSIS Ventures,
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Social Investment Scotland
(SIS), provides the tools and mission-aligned investment required
to help early-stage businesses grow and deliver impact at scale. In
return for investment, SIS Ventures seeks a mission lock – where
the social and/or environmental mission of the organisation is
locked into the Articles of Association and cannot be changed
without consent. Launched in 2018 and authorised by the
Financial Conduct Authority, SIS Ventures has already raised and
deployed £7.2 million among 16 early-stage impact-led businesses.
SIS Ventures is a signatory to the Operating Principles of Impact
Management which provide a global framework for investors to ensure
that impact considerations are integrated throughout an investment
lifecycle. Targets for investment include businesses which are
committed to progressing the diversity and inclusion agenda and
those whose products or services progress the United Nations
Sustainable Development Goals. For more information about SIS
Ventures, visit www.sisventures.com
About Rubio Impact VenturesRubio Impact
Ventures is a leading impact venture fund based in the Netherlands
with €150 million AUM. Rubio invests in world-changing
entrepreneurs who unite powerful positive impact with a scalable
commercial business; the future-proof approach to successful
business. Rubio offers its investments a winning blend of capital,
expertise and network access to help them accelerate to the next
level. Want to find out more? Check
out: https://www.rubio.vc.
About the Wilbur-Ellis CompaniesFounded in
1921, the Wilbur-Ellis companies are leading international
marketers, distributors and manufacturers of agricultural products,
animal nutrients and specialty chemicals and ingredients. By
developing strong relationships, making strategic market
investments and capitalizing on new opportunities, the Wilbur-Ellis
companies have continued to grow the business with sales of over $3
billion. Cavallo Ventures, the venture capital arm of Wilbur Ellis,
supports early-stage companies that solve real problems in the
industries we serve. Beyond capital, we provide deep expertise and
market knowledge. For more information, please visit
www.cavallovc.com.
About The University of GlasgowThe University
of Glasgow is a world top 100 university and a member of the
UK's Russell Group with over £200m in annual research income
that supports leading edge studies in the fields of medicine, life
sciences, physical sciences, social sciences and the arts. It is
currently investing to convert its research-led innovations into
economic and social impact through licensing, consultancy,
collaboration and new venture creation.
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