SOLASTA Bio raises £4m for ‘eco-friendly’ insecticide

By George Simister

University of Glasgow spinout SOLASTA Bio has secured £4m in funding for an ″eco-friendly″ insecticide to help protect crops from damage caused by insects.

The company uses neuron-made small proteins, called neuropeptides, instead of synthetic chemicals traditionally used in insecticides. SOLASTA says its ″nature-inspired″ products can specifically target pest insects while leaving pollinators, such as bees, unharmed.

Following R&D trials, SOLASTA Bio hopes its first patent-protected product will be on the market in 2027. SOLASTA Bio says it has developed a technology platform that to create insecticides that could be applied to any pest insect.

SOLASTA Bio CEO Shireen Davies. Image credit: SOLASTA Bio

″We’ve spent the past 18 months developing our platform and validating peptide candidates with expert third parties and commercial partners,″ said Shireen Davies PhD, CEO of SOLASTA Bio.

″We’re really excited by the results and feel that we’re ready to take the next step towards commercialising our technology.″

The Scottish startup will double its current team of 25 by making new hires in its technical and commercial divisions. It will also use the ″pre-Series A″ investment to scale up its UK and US activity.

Capital came from lead investor Yield Lab Europe accompanied by Rubio Impact Ventures, Scottish Enterprise, Cavallo Ventures, SIS Ventures, UKI2S and unnamed angels.

Total funding for the company now stands at £5.5m and follows a previous £1.3m raise.

Harry Howarth, investment manager at SIS Ventures, said: ″As an investor in impact-led businesses, SOLASTA Bio is a superb example of how business can effectively balance people, planet and profit.