- NewLeaf Symbiotics has successfully closed a $45 million series D funding round.
- Gullspång Re:food led the investment, and will take up position as a member of the Board of Directors
- NewLeaf specialises in the discovery and commercialisation of products containing microbes symbiotic with plants
- Their pioneer product is the pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs (PPFMs)
US-based startup, NewLeaf Symbiotics, has announced the close of a $45 million series D funding round led by new investor, Gullspång Re:food, and supported by Otter Capital Partners LP, S2G Ventures, and Leaps by Bayer among others.
NewLeaf Symbiotics is an agricultural biotech company which specialises in the discovery and production of products containing a “genus of beneficial microbes that are ubiquitous and naturally symbiotic with plants.” It is a pioneer of pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs (PPFMs), natural microbes which help build tolerance in plants.
In the past three years, NewLeaf Symbiotics has been able to commercialise its PPFM technology, with an increase in PPFM use in corn and soy farmlands. By 2023, the product-applied footprint has increased to 3.5 million acres in crop year from 800,000 acres in 2022, further projected to reach nearly 11 million acres in 2024.
With the new funding, NewLeaf will expand and expedite the PPFM technology, introducing new areas of biostimulants/microbial inoculants, biocontrol, nitrogen use efficiency and methane mitigation. This includes a new EPA-registered corn rootworm-repellant biopesticide, new biostimulant technologies for peanut and cotton, and further research in rice production, nitrogen efficiency and methane reduction impact.
“NewLeaf is an ideal match for the Re:food portfolio,” says Peter Odemark, Managing Director of Re:food. “Farmers across the globe face increasing challenges every season, and PPFM technology can support them in finding sustainable solutions to positively impact the way food is produced. There are still more opportunities to uncover, and we’re thrilled to be a part of the journey.” Odemark will also become one of NewLeaf’s Board of Directors.
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“This round of funding is a testament to the science-led, proven performance of NewLeaf PPFM technology,” says Brent Smith, CEO and President of NewLeaf Symbiotics. “Our team’s strong work positions us for growth and continuous discovery of the capability Pink Performance delivers in the field. We will see this momentum move us into 2024 and beyond through more crops, expanded geographies and increased acreage.”
Cover Image: Business Wire