UK agrochemical discovery firm Redag Crop Protection secures £1.6m of growth capital

Agrochemical discovery company Redag Crop Protection has successfully completed an initial £1.6m equity fundraising as part of a larger financing round.

The capital aims to accelerate the development of the company's innovative crop protection products, which it said would "support global food security".

Based in Macclesfield, Redag was established in 2014 having spun-out from drug development company Redx Pharma PLC.

It currently has in excess of 50 new compounds in development including later-stage products that have demonstrated 'excellent results' in glasshouse testing and field trials.

The chemical discovery company said it was now targeting multiple different markets within the crop protection product sector, and has filed an extensive IP estate.

It added that the capital would enable the company to further invest in its agrochemical discovery programme Project Evolve.

The transaction is the first fundraising for KPMG Acceleris, the venture capital advisory firm, after it secured approval from the FCA in November 2022.

Bill Thompson, CEO of Redag, said "This successful fundraising from our supportive investor base will enable us to accelerate the unique intellectual property position created by Project Evolve.

"The industry has seen a declining number of compounds in development following a period of consolidation across large agrochemical companies, alongside an increasing number of compounds being deregistered or withdrawn for health, safety or environmental reasons.

"Right across the industry there is a strategic need for new compounds to replace the older compounds to provide greater efficacy, safety and environmental sustainability."

The fundraising was led by Simon Thorn, managing partner of KPMG Acceleris, who said the team at Redag Crop had "built something really special".

"The business is a standout innovator in the sector that is pushing the boundaries of sustainable food production," Mr Thorn said.

"The fundraising provides vital capital to fuel the development and commercialisation of its cutting-edge crop protection products."