Phagelux AgriHealth announces multiple commercial collaborations for phage-based pesticides

Date:04-28-2020

Phagelux AgriHealth, Inc., a global agriculture biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of novel phage products and solutions, recently made multiple announcements about new collaborations.

Ryan Benson, Director of US Sales and Marketing for OmniLytics, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Phagelux AgriHealth, Inc., announced that the company has entered into an exclusive European sales, marketing, and product development collaboration with DCM for its AgriPhage line of biopesticides. Benson stated, "We are highly encouraged that one of the leading European plant care companies will be both selling our line of products throughout the continent and also working with us to create new phage-based crop protection products." Inge Hanssen, Research & Development Manager at DCM, further explained that "This partnership will enable us to fully explore and develop the potential of bacteriophages for next-generation plant protection strategies, thus contributing to the productivity, safety, and health of the agricultural and produce industry in Europe."

Inge Hanssen added, "Bacteriophage technology provides a very promising strategy to control bacterial plant diseases which, until today, remains largely untapped in Europe. The partnership between Phagelux and DCM will enable the development and registration of highly specific and environmentally friendly biocontrol products targeting bacterial diseases. In Europe, growers largely rely on copper-based products to control bacterial diseases. Bacteriophage based products will enable growers to manage bacterial diseases without using these environmentally damaging copper products."

Tyler Homer, General Manager for OmniLytics, further announced that OmniLytics has entered into a sales and marketing agreement for selected biopesticide products from the AgriPhage product line with Agrikem in Turkey and several surrounding markets. Mr. Homer stated, "We are delighted to be working with the market leader in Turkey. Agrikem has very rapidly begun to register our products. We expect that AgriPhage products will provide better control for bacteria that harm crops and do so in an environmentally friendly manner."

Cuneyt Topal, EVP of Agrikem, said "Agrikem is a pioneer of the biopesticide industry in Turkey. We believe that an approach based on biological science can improve plant health and can simultaneously provide long-term environmentally friendly solutions. We aim to contribute to the production of healthier crops and a more livable world. To reiterate, our main aim is to offer or develop plant protection products that are environmentally friendly and which are also suitable for integrated plant protection programs. We believe that the phage products produced by Phagelux AgriHealth will be useful tools to control bacterial diseases in plants where today's solutions are becoming outdated and less effective."