^{Joint News Release}

BASF and AgBiome collaborate on a new biological fungicide for Europe, Middle East and Africa

• Innovative biological fungicide from AgBiome will broaden BASF’s BioSolutions portfolio for vegetables, ornamentals and turf applications
• First market introductions expected in 2024/2025

Limburgerhof, Germany, and Research Triangle Park, NC, United States, March 30, 2021 - BASF and AgBiome have signed an agreement to bring a new biological fungicide to the market in Europe, and key countries in the Middle East and Africa. Developed by AgBiome, and marketed as Howler^® in the United States, the biological fungicide with multiple modes of action provides preventive, long-lasting activity on a broad spectrum of soilborne and foliar diseases. BASF will support the further development and registration and will be the exclusive distributor in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Subject to successful registrations, first market introductions in selected countries are expected in 2024/2025. 

“With this collaboration we will broaden our BioSolutions portfolio, especially in Europe,” said Marco Moorfeld, Vice President for Market Management in Europe, Africa, Middle East and Central Asia at BASF’s Agricultural Solutions division. “We believe that the complementary combination of conventional crop protection and BioSolutions is the way forward for sustainable agriculture and we are convinced that strong partnerships in the industry are essential to bring more innovations to the market.”

The new biological fungicide is effective against diseases like Pythium, Fusarium, Rhizoctonia, and Botrytis as well as active against several other diseases. It is based on the bacterium Pseudomonas chlororaphis – strain AFS009. The fungicide will be made available for use in vegetables and ornamentals as well as for applications on turf such as golf courses. It can be applied effectively at every phase of vegetable production – from greenhouse to pre-plant until harvest. This makes it a valuable tool to complement conventional crop protection products as part of a comprehensive integrated pest management program.

“AgBiome is very pleased to be partnering with BASF to develop its newest highly efficacious biofungicide in Europe and certain adjacent markets in the Middle East and Africa,” said Toni Bucci, Chief Operating Officer at AgBiome. “BASF aligns with our goals to provide sustainable crop protection solutions, as we continue to see high growth potential for biological products in Europe,” added Bucci.

Financial details of the agreement are not disclosed.

About BASF’s Agricultural Solutions division

With a rapidly growing population, the world is increasingly dependent on our ability to develop and maintain sustainable agriculture and healthy environments. Working with farmers, agricultural professionals, pest management experts and others, it is our role to help make this possible. That’s why we invest in a strong R&D pipeline and broad portfolio, including seeds and traits, chemical and biological crop protection, soil management, plant health, pest control and digital farming. With expert teams in the lab, field, office and in production, we connect innovative thinking and down-to-earth action to create real world ideas that work – for farmers, society and the planet. In 2020, our division generated sales of €7.7 billion. For more information, please visit www.agriculture.basf.com or any of our social media channels.

About AgBiome

AgBiome^® partners with the microbial world to improve our planet. AgBiome discovers and develops innovative biological and trait products for crop protection. The proprietary GENESIS™ discovery platform efficiently captures diverse, unique microbes for agriculturally relevant applications, and screens them with industry-best assays for insect, disease, and nematode control. Through its commercial subsidiaries, AgBiome develops and sells proprietary crop protection solutions. The first of these, Howler^®, is a revolutionary fungicide for disease control in a broad variety of crops. AgBiome Innovations International is an AgBiome subsidiary engaged in commercialization of AgBiome's portfolio of products internationally through direct presence or partnerships with industry leaders outside of the United States and Canada. For more information, visit http://agbiome.com.  

BASF Media Contact:                                               AgBiome Media Contact

Stephanie Reiss                                                        Liz Gaston

Phone: +49 173 5728212                                         Phone: +1 919-917-6920

stephanie.reiss@basf.com                                        lgaston@agbiome.com

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