January 8, 2018

Inocucor Technologies, a Montreal-based producer of sustainable microbial crop accelerators and biostimulants for high-value produce and row crops, announced a second close to its Series B funding round.

Pontifax AgTech has led additional funding of US$9.5 million to bring the Series B to a new total of US$38.9 million

Founded in 2014 in Santa Monica, California, Pontifax is a leading growth capital investor focused on backing fast-growing businesses with proven technologies that have a positive effect on agricultural production, sustainability, nutrition, health,  and supply chain efficiency.

Inocucor’s initial Series B financing was announced in March 2017, which included TPG Alternative and Renewable Technologies (TPG ART) – a late stage, growth equity venture vehicle managed by alternative asset firm TPG; Closed Loop Capital – a venture capital firm focused on early stage funding of agtech and food system innovations; Desjardins Innovatech, the venture capital unit of Desjardins, one of the top cooperative financial groups in Canada with more than $200 billion in assets, and Montreal-based Cycle Capital Management – a clean tech venture capital firm that has been an early investor in Inocucor since 2013.

Inocucor uses a patented fermentation  technology similar to that used in winemaking, incorporating multiple strains of yeasts, bacteria, and fungi to produce biostimulant solutions that improve seed germination, shorten necessary growing time, and improve crop yield through the building of healthier soil.  Additionally, the company is currently developing a suite of microbial biocontrol products that target diseases affecting potatoes, tomatoes, and strawberries.

“Biologicals are currently the single fastest-growing area within AgTech, with microbial discovery platforms that produce more sustainable, superior alternatives to traditional agrochemicals poised to gain far greater adoption among growers,” said Ben Belldegrun, managing partner and co-founder of Pontifax AgTech. “Inocucor is distinguished from its peers by its talented management team, growing portfolio of commercialized products and established distribution channels for these proven technologies.”

First and Second Generation

This additional funding will support Inocucor in the acceleration of its commercialization, production, and marketing of its first and second generation products, Synergro® and Synergro Free™, as well as its new suite of products developed for potatoes, tomatoes, and strawberries.

Synergro™ is a U.S. rebranding of Inocucor’s flagship product, Garden Solution®,  and is a live cell formulation of Inocucor’s patented fermentation technology used to boost production of high-value produce such as tomatoes, peppers, squash, strawberries, broccoli, and melons, among other crops.

Initially, the product was introduced to organic growers of high-value produce. “They’re the fastest to adopt a new product and they understand microbial-based biologicals,” Donald Marvin, Inocucor president and CEO, told GAI News in January.  “Plus, they have limited tools in their toolbox to treat crops because they are organic farmers,” adding that when conventional growers began noticing the yield pops among their organic peers they too started asking for the product. “Now Synergro is used by both organic growers and traditional growers alike,” he said.

Synergro Free™ is a commercial bio-fertilizer with the microbes removed, that is added to existing nutrient products as a biological additive designed to boost plant growth and to increase yields of crops such as corn, wheat, cotton, and soybeans.

Both products are the first microbials of their kind to be granted registration in Canada, while in the U.S, Synergro™ is national OMRI-listed, and OIM-listed in the state of California for organic production. Synergro™ is approved and registered for use in 22 U.S. states, and Synergro Free™ is registered in 16 U.S. states.

“Our investment in the company, combined with the access we can provide to leading growers and strategic players, will support Inocucor’s further growth and the expansion of its product portfolio to a wider range of crop varieties,” said Belldegrun.

Other goals the company has stated it will use its Series B funding for include supporting the opening of Inocucor’s U.S. headquarters and commercialization office, lifting the company’s production capacity at its pilot production and R&D facility in Montreal, and expanding the company’s team in a way that would strengthen its managerial and scientific expertise.

A Second Green Revolution

Inocucor foresees its technology as playing a role in a second green revolution for global agriculture, wherein advances in production and output will be driven by earth-friendly products.

“We’ve come a long way in a few short years, with two products in use in the field, a signature line of biocontrol products under development and hundreds of field trials underway throughout the Americas,” said Inocucor’s President and CEO Donald R. Marvin. “Our business strategy and plan are guided by our vision for a Second Green Revolution for agriculture, one that uses earth-friendly farming products to improve crop yields, revitalize soils and improve water quality.”

As the company continues to realize strategic growth, Inocucor will move to its new 30,000 square foot U.S. headquarters and commercialization office located in Centennial, Colorado, this coming spring, while its R&D Technical Center of Excellence in Montreal, Canada, is being doubled in size from 10,000 to 20,000 square feet to enable it to allow for expanded product development and manufacturing. Additionally, its current team of 40 across Montreal and the U.S. will be expanded by another 25 to 30 high-level scientific and managerial professionals within the next year.

However, Inocucor also has an eye abroad, as is evident through its dynamic plans for expansion into South America and Europe.

“Our corporate strategy includes staking our claim as a market leader in this emerging segment by growing organically with our own proprietary microbial consortia technology while also pursuing strategic acquisitions and product development partnerships in North America, Latin America and Western Europe,” Marvin said in a March 2017 press release announcing the initial Series B.

-Lynda Kiernan