Marrone Bio Innovations:“I will come to China.”
Date:07-18-2019
I have been staying in touch with biopesticide and novel fertilizer companies since I joined AgroPages. In the past years I also have been contacting with the leading biopesticide manufacturer Marrone Bio Innovations, inviting their CEO&Founder Ms. Pamela Marrone to visit China. MBI said to me a few days ago:” Yes, I will come to China.” ——The company will attend the 2nd Biopesticides and Novel Fertilizers International Summit (BioEx 2019) which is going to take place in Hangzhou, China on 22-23 August. MBI will also give a speech on the Summit.
Speaking of biopesticides, many of us believe in their increasing popularity in the future market. But at current stage it remains tepid in China. However, Chinese manufacturers, distributors and farmers have changed their points of view about biopesticides over these years, and eager to get inspired from advanced oversea R&D, application technologies and marketing strategies.
It is our honor to have MBI participate in BioEx 2019. I suppose some of you have already known the background of MBI. This U.S based company is listed in the NASDAQ capital market. Its revenue was around $21.2 million in 2018. The legendary founder Ms. Pamela must take credit for such achievement. I was flattered to meet Ms. Pamela in the ABIM conference back in 2016 in Swiss. During the conversation with her, I felt the ultimate pursue for the biopesticides development from Ms. Pamela. She has devoted herself in the biopesticides domain for many decades, which explains her dedication and passion in crop protection.
Pamela Marrone
1983-1990: Back in the days Ms. Pamela was the employee of Monsanto, in charge of developing new solutions for pest control. Under her leadership, the team developed the very first organic and environmentally friendly high throughput auto-screening solution, and screened more than 100,000 microorganism for the later development of biopesticides. Moreover, she invented and introduced artificial way to feed Diabrotica Virgifera, which became the screening standard of the Bt bacteria and other microorganisms.
1990-1995: She founded her very first company Entotech, which later became the biopesticide department of famous Denish pharmacy company - Novo Nordisk.
1995-2006: Ms. Pamela established her second company AgraQuest. Later it became the top 3 biopesticide company in the world, and received Awards including Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award, Preeminent Technology prizes in global crop protection and Red Herring Top 100. In 2006 Bayer completed the acquisition of AgraQest with $425 million, which broke the record of acquisition in biopesticides industry history. Over 11 years, AgraQuest screened around 22,000 microorganisms, which built a firm foundation of the biopesticide series Serenade and Sonata. Serenade is now the model of biofungicides worldwide.
2006-Now: Her third company Marrone Bio Innovations was founded in 2006, and listed on the NASDAQ in 2013. So far this company is in the leading position in biopesticide industry.
MBI is well known for its R&D ability. It has screened 18,000+ microorganisms and 350 plant extracts to develop natural pesticides and biostimulants. MBI has launched 9 biopesticides, including fungicide, insecticide, nematicide, molluscicide, antitranspirant, etc. I will further introduce some products below:
Regalia: The product derived from the extraction of Reynoutria sachalinensis. This bactericide creates a defense response in the treated plants and stimulates additional biochemical pathways that strengthen the plant structure and act against the pathogen. The product maintains the crop healthy, increases the production and improves the quality.
Venerate: The major active ingredient is Burkholderia rinojensis strain A396, which was discovered by MBI. It has both insecticidal and miticidal properties. Venerate is listed by the Organic Materials Research Institute (OMRI) and the National Organic Program (NOP) for use in organic gardening and farming. In the case of cannabis, Venerate increases the yield by reducing plant damage from pests by up to 80 percent.
MBI-014: In 2018 MBI applied for the registration of MBI-014, which is a water dispersible microbial herbicide, derived from Burkholderia rinojensis strain A396. The launch of MBI-014 means there can be a brand new way to weed for organic growers.
The MBI biopesticide products have been tested in the market with significant score. MBI has set up collaboration with enterprises like Syngenta, FMC, Disagro and Koch that distribute MBI products worldwide. Meanwhile MBI also managed to build partnership in the markets of India, Thailand, the Philippines, etc. As for the huge market like China, MBI is currently looking for a strategic partner who is willing to grow together.
Therefore, the company assigns Ms. Julie Versman, the Sr. Director for International Business at MBI, to attend BioEx 2019, introduce the company to the Chinese industry and source potential partnership. And AgroPages is assisting MBI in finding Chinese distributors.
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