August 29, 2022

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

Peptide-based biological crop protection developer Vestaron initially announced in May of this year that it had successfully raised $82 million through a Series C co-led by Ordway Selections and Cavallo Ventures with participation from Agronautic Ventures, Fortistar, and Endeavor8, and returning investors Novo Holdings, Northpond Ventures, CGC Ventures (the venture unit of Continental Grain), iSelect, and Syngenta Ventures. 

Now, Vestaron returns with an update, announcing the addition of another $10 million to its Series C committed by Grosvenor Food & AgTech. 

The biologicals market includes biopesticides, biofertilizers, and biostimulants, which due to increased regulation and a growing focus on sustainable practices are commanding an increasing share of the market.  According to a report by ResearchandMarkets.com, the agricultural biologicals market is estimated to have had a value of USD $6.75 billion in 2017, and is projected to reach USD $12.86 billion by 2022, which translates to a compound annual growth rate of nearly 14 percent.

Headed by president and CEO Anna Rath, Vestaron is dedicated to debunking accepted narratives, and improving the safety, efficacy, and sustainability of crop protection through the development of a novel class of peptide-based biopesticides.

Peptides are small, naturally-occurring proteins that have proven modes of action, and therefore the same efficacy as traditional synthetic products, but offering the safety and environmental protection of biologicals. And as existing traditional products currently on the market face increasingly stringent regulation due to environmental concerns, along with declining efficacy due to pest resistance, Vestaron’s peptide-based crop protection products provide a critical alternative for farmers and agricultural producers at price parity with leading chemical pesticides while also being soft on honeybees and other beneficial pollinators, fish, and mammals.

“Grosvenor Food & AgTech partners with businesses that leverage innovative technology to improve the world’s production of food,” said Monty Bayer of Grosvenor Food & AgTech.  “Vestaron’s platform of effective peptide-based solutions are on a path to transform crop protection. The future of global food systems depends on the ability of growers to successfully grow and profitably sell their crops, and we’re excited to invest in Vestaron’s sustainable, people- and pollinator-friendly pesticides that can vastly reduce the $70B in crop losses now faced by growers each year.”

Six key muscle and nerve receptors collectively account for 80 percent of the global insecticide market, and Vestaron has peptides in its pipeline suited to address all of them. When discussing the transition of crop protection away from traditional synthetic products to biological, Rath said, “This transition is being driven by the same factors that drove a similar transition in pharma – slowing innovation, increasing late stage failures and thus development costs – as well as factors specific to crop protection including resistance of pests to existing solutions, environmental and worker safety issues, and consumer awareness of and focus on food safety and quality.”

Using an advanced proprietary fermentation-based peptide platform, Vestaron can develop a range of biological crop protection and trait products. And with this additional funding, the company stated it intends to accelerate the development of its pipeline of peptide-empowered solutions, each with a novel mode of action.

Its first two launched products are Spear®-T, which is designed for greenhouse use and controls all four of the major greenhouse pests – thrips, whiteflies, aphids, and mites; and Spear-Lep, which is designed for field use to control lepidopteran pests.

Both products are based on Vestaron’s Spear peptide, which has been assigned a novel nerve and muscular mode of action targeting the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor, which is responsible for approximately 30 percent of the $18 billion global insecticide market.

Commenting on this new partnership with Grosvenor Food & AgTech, Rath said, “We’re excited to work with Grosvenor Food & AgTech because of their deep experience investing in the agtech sector. They’re one of the longest established investment firms in the space, and we look forward to leveraging their strengths as we continue to grow.”

~ 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 Unconventional Ag. She can be reached at lkiernan-stone@globalaginvesting.com.

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