TIDMEDEN
Eden Research plc
02 November 2020
2 November 2020
Eden Research Plc
("Eden" or "Company")
Eden partners with M H Poskitt to develop bio-fungicide
targeting late blight
Eden Research plc (AIM: EDEN), the AIM-quoted company focused on
sustainable biopesticides and plastic-free formulation technology
for use in global crop protection, animal health and consumer
products industries, announces that it has partnered with M H
Poskitt ("Poskitt") to develop and trial a new bio-fungicide
product designed to protect and improve the quality of vegetables.
M H Poskitt is a family owned farming business based in East
Riding, Yorkshire, specialising in the growing and packing of root
vegetables for leading supermarkets and is a leading producer of
carrots in the UK. Poskitt's farm currently produces approximately
80,000 tonnes of crops per year serving UK retailers and a range of
other customers.
The partnership has been established to support an R&D
project that M H Poskitt has been engaged in investigating the
effect of mugwort plant extract on key plant diseases. The plant
extract has been trialled on potatoes, carrots, and parsnips, and
initial results suggest that it could help to combat fungal
diseases. One example is potato late blight (Phytophthora
infestans), which is a significant disease in both organic and
conventionally grown potatoes and if left untreated, can destroy
entire crops.
Over the coming two years, Eden, which has expertise in
plant-derived sustainable chemistry and developing and registering
biopesticide products, will be conducting wider testing with the
aim of developing a commercially viable product. The collaboration
is currently in the early stages of development and does not have a
significant impact on management's expectations for the performance
of the business for the time being. This unique project could
eventually provide farmers with a naturally-derived product to help
protect against late blight, which costs farmers an estimated
GBP55m each year in the UK alone.
Options for chemical control of late blight are very limited.
Recently, the EU Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and
Feed voted not to renew a key active ingredient that is commonly
used to combat late blight. The ban will come into force over the
next 12 months, and as a consequence, farmers have even fewer good
choices for the effective control of diseases. This further
highlights the urgent need for sustainable crop protection
alternatives. Both Eden and Poskitt are aligned in their belief
that the UK agriculture sector requires more sustainable,
alternative crop protection products.
Sean Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Eden Research, commented
: "Our partnership with innovative grower Poskitt is an excellent
example of collaboration in UK agriculture. Eden and Poskitt share
the mutual goal of advancing sustainable alternatives for crop
protection in the UK and further afield. When we first heard about
Poskitt's discovery and the initial R&D, we were keen to get
involved due to our experience in developing plant-derived
chemistry into effective products. Poskitt's initial observations
and field evaluation work are an excellent example of how
innovative Britain's farming sector is, and we look forward to
working with Poskitt on this project and achieving positive
outcomes for the future of UK crop protection."
Guy Poskitt, Managing Director of M H Poskitt, commented: "We
are delighted to be working with Eden to advance the R&D
project in collaboration with another British company championing
sustainable agriculture as the goal posts get higher for quality,
residue-free produce in supermarkets. Following successful results
in our initial field trials, we are excited about potentially
finding an alternative treatment to phytophthora, which remains one
of the biggest challenges faced by root vegetable farmers."
"This is an RNS Reach announcement and this collaboration is
early stage and does not have significant impact on management's
current expectations of performance. RNS Reach is an investor
communication service aimed at assisting listed and unlisted
(including AIM quoted) companies to distribute non-regulatory news
releases into the public domain. Information required to be
notified under the AIM Rules for Companies, Market Abuse Regulation
or other regulation would be disseminated as an RNS regulatory
announcement and not on RNS Reach."
For further information contact:
Eden Research plc www.edenresearch.com
Sean Smith
Alex Abrey 01285 359 555
Hawthorn Advisors (Financial PR)
Jana Tsiligiannis eden@hawthornadvisors.com
Ed Curtis
Notes:
About M H Poskitt
MH Poskitt is a family owned farming business based in the East
Riding of Yorkshire specializing in the growing of root vegetables
for leading supermarkets. MH Poskitt has been producing carrots for
over forty years in Yorkshire and has built a reputation as the
leading supplier in the White Rose County.
MH Poskitt's constant strive for perfection has grown our
customer base and has developed and strengthened our position as
one of the leading producers in the country.
About Eden Research
Eden Research is an AIM quoted company that develops and
supplies breakthrough biopesticide products and natural
microencapsulation technologies to the global crop protection,
animal health and consumer products industries
Eden's Sustaine(R) encapsulation technology harnesses the
biocidal efficacy of naturally occurring chemicals produced by
plants (terpenes) and can be used with both natural and synthetic
compounds to enhance their performance and ease-of-use.
Sustaine microcapsules are naturally derived, plastic-free,
biodegradable micro-spheres derived from yeast extract. They
produce stabilised aqueous suspensions which, are easy to mix and
apply, have phased release patterns, are safer for the environment
and the crops themselves.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has proposed an EU-wide
restriction on the placing on the market or use of
"intentionally-added" microplastic particles. The proposed
restriction includes the use of microplastics for agricultural and
horticultural purposes, including polymers utilized for
controlled-release fertilizers, encapsulated plant protection
products (PPPs), seed coatings, and biocides.
By 2025 in the EU, pesticides containing synthetic polymer
microplastics are likely to be banned and removed from the market.
The only acceptable alternative is the substitution with
biodegradable formulations. Reformulated products will need to be
evaluated and registered within the five-year transition
period.
Sustaine is one of the only viable, proven and immediately
registerable solutions to the microplastics problem in formulations
requiring encapsulation.
Historically, terpenes have had limited commercial use in the
agrochemical sector due to their volatility, phytotoxicity and poor
solubility. Sustaine provides a unique, environmentally friendly
solution to these problems and enables terpenes to be used as
effective, low-risk agrochemicals.
Eden is developing these technologies through innovative
research and a series of commercial production, marketing and
distribution partnerships.
The Company has a number of patents and a pipeline of products
at differing stages of development targeting specific areas of the
global agrochemicals industry. To date, the Company has invested in
the region of 14m in developing and protecting its intellectual
property and seeking regulatory approval for products that rely
upon the Company's technologies. Revenues earned by the Company
have been modest whilst the Company has concentrated on securing
patent protection for its intellectual property, gaining regulatory
approvals, identifying suitable industrial partners, and entering
into commercial agreements.
In May 2013, the three actives that comprise Eden's first
commercial product, Mevalone, were approved as new ingredients for
use in plant protection products by the European Commission ("EC").
This represented a major milestone in the commercialisation of
Eden's technology and is a significant accomplishment for any
company. To illustrate this point, one should note that in 2013,
Eden's approvals represented 3 of only 10 new active ingredients
approved by the EC.
Mevalone(R) is a foliar biofungicide which initially targets a
key disease affecting grapes and other high-value fruit and
vegetable crops. It is approved for sale in a number of key
countries whilst Eden and its partners pursue regulatory clearance
in new territories thereby growing Eden's addressable market
globally.
Cedroz(TM) is a bionematicide that targets free living nematodes
which are parasitic worms that affect a wide range of high-value
fruit and vegetable crops globally. Cedroz is registered for sale
on two continents and Eden's commercial collaborator, Eastman
Chemical, is pursuing registration and commercialisation of this
important new product in numerous countries globally.
Eden was admitted to trading on AIM on 11 May 2012 and trades
under the symbol EDEN.
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