August 13, 2021

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

It’s been a minute since we’ve heard about a massive SPAC deal, but GreenLight Biosciences brings us back to the table, announcing its agreement to merge with special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Environmental Impact Acquisition Corp. to list on the Nasdaq at a valuation of $1.2 billion. 

Boston-based GreenLight Biosciences develops sustainable solutions for some of the world’s most challenging issues through RNA-driven products for agriculture and life sciences applications.

RNA is the oldest molecule on the planet that controls the biological processes of all living things. And while RNA-based products in relation to plant and life sciences have been in existence for a while, it has not been until now that they are commercially viable, thanks to GreenLight’s breakthrough of being able to rapidly and affordably produce RNA at scale through its novel cell-free GreenWorx bioproduction platform.

This breakthrough cell-free RNA manufacturing platform is capable of producing RNA sequences of exceptional fidelity in a fully-scalable fashion, and at a lower cost than other platforms, all done in an environmentally-friendly, sustainable manner.

Andrey Zarur, co-founder and CEO of GreenLight Biosciences, explained to GAI News in a interview last year that the products developed by the company do not involve genetic modification, but rather target unwanted pests to a competitive level of control and cost competitiveness, but do it in a much safer and sustainable way. 

“Cell-free bioproduction was a critical breakthrough in making RNA-based pest controls commercially viable. Most pesticides sprayed on crops today kill not only the target pest, but also many non-target pollinators and beneficial insects,” Zarur told GAI News. 

“Consider that in just one acre of farmland there are approximately 10 million individual insects, but just a tiny percentage of these bugs will eat your crop. Yet so many of them are impacted with today’s conventional methods.”

This work has attracted the attention of top-tier investors, as is evident by the company raising $122 million over the course of only two months one year ago. 

As a next step, GreenLight Biosciences has agreed to a merger with SPAC Environmental Impact Acquisition Corp.(Nasdaq: ENVI), an affiliate of Canaccord Genuity Group that raised $207 million through an IPO in January.

“We are thrilled to partner with ENVI to accelerate our vision and advance the delivery of our solutions to where they are needed most, with shared goals to pave the way for a sustainable planet through widely available and affordable RNA,” said Zarur.

The deal is expected to generate $282  million to fund operations, including $105 million of fully committed PIPE financing backed by S2G Ventures, Cormorant Asset Management, Morningside Venture Investments, Hudson Bay Capital, BNP Paribas Ecosystem Restoration Fund, The Jeremy and Hannelore Grantham Environmental Trust, Continental Grain Company, Pura Vida Investments LLC, Xeraya Capital, and MLS Fund II/Spruce.

“When considering quality merger partners that aligned with our mission of delivering environmental and social impact, we saw GreenLight as both a notable and compelling partner for ENVI and our shareholders. In creating ENVI, our goal was to partner with a high-growth, technology-rich business, propelled by a large market opportunity and a business model supporting critical sustainability initiatives,” said Dan Coyne, CEO, ENVI.

With the capital raised through this deal, GreenLight Biosciences plans to develop an mRNA manufacturing platform to provide therapeutics (much like the mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccines) at scale.

Within the agricultural sphere, traditional chemical pesticides are coming under increasingly more strident consumer opposition, with some formulas being banned due to concerns over potential environmental damage, growing resistance among crops, and their non-specific nature which leads to the killing of both harmful and beneficial insects.

In response, the company intends to advance products in development including RNA-based pesticides aimed at protecting honey bees from the parasitic varroa destructor mite, believed to be responsible for colony collapse, and protecting staple foods from destructive insect pests. 

Zarur summed it up to GAI News in 2020 saying, “Farmers gain a powerful new way to reduce their use of chemical pesticides, growing healthy crops in an environmentally-friendly way. Consumers’ increasing demands for safer, toxin-free foods are met. And the world gains greater food security with effective agricultural products.”

“GreenLight has a pipeline of RNA products spanning human, animal, and plant health that are being developed to serve the needs of billions, promoting improved access to wellness, sustainable agriculture, and health,” said Coyne. “GreenLight has assembled a diverse, talented, qualified, and exceptional team that has built multiple companies. GreenLight is driven to make this cutting-edge platform a reality so that it is available to the world and understands what it takes to deliver breakthrough technology to market. We share GreenLight’s enthusiasm for this combination.”

Zurer added, “We believe that GreenLight’s breakthrough platform can create advanced therapies, vaccines, and crop-protection products that address—quickly, directly, and specifically—some of the most significant problems facing the world today.”

“Going public through this partnership will accelerate development and commercialization by enabling us to attract the talent, purchase the tools, scale our manufacturing infrastructure, advance regulatory approvals, and develop further the science necessary to address some of humanity’s most pressing challenges.”

– Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain News. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.