US EPA approval granted to Oxford’s Eden Research

Oxford-based sustainable biopesticide company, Eden Research PLC, which Is developing plastic-free technology for use in crop protection, animal health and consumer products has been granted regulatory approval from the United States Environmental Protection Agency on five petitions.

These cover three active ingredients, eugenol, geraniol and thymol, and two formulated products, Mevalone® and Cedroz™. The two products, with a market potential of approximately €94 million for Mevalone and €189 million for Cedroz, will open up significant revenue opportunities for the firm.

Eden Research's share price has risen by over 15% in September.

The approval of the ingredients is expected to accelerate the registration of Eden’s developmental insecticide. If field trials for this product go as hoped, Eden will pursue the registration of this product which has a total market potential of €237 million.

While pesticides make up a large percentage of the overall spend on crop inputs, a growing number are being banned by regulators around the world meaning farmers need viable alternatives to maintain output in the face of growing demand for food production.

This is increasingly seeing them turn to biopesticides, such as the two products above, which, by being derived from natural substances offer a more sustainable approach while maintaining similar efficacy, safety, yield and production costs.

Eden will initially focus on coastal and southern states, such as California and Florida, which have a high prevalence of high value horticultural crops, meaning Eden’s products can deliver the highest value.

Once state-level approval is granted, Eden will begin marketing these products as soon as possible. Assuming expected regulatory timelines hold out, meaningful sales are expected to begin in 2023.

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Sean Smith, chief executive officer of Eden Research PLC, said: “Eden has been at the forefront of accelerating change in the sustainable agricultural input market for several years, and our authorisations in the US mark the next milestone in this journey, significantly expanding our addressable market to include the second largest food market in the world.

“As a small but innovative UK business, we are proud of the impact that Eden can have on the global stage. Despite our size, we export our pioneering products and technologies to Europe, Africa, Australia, and North America, partnering with some of the largest global players in the crop protection industry.

“The EPA authorisations are the result of over four years of effort by our experienced regulatory, development and commercial teams who worked tirelessly to ensure that Eden addressed the EPA’s extensive and evolving list of strict requirements.

“We are among the very few British crop protection companies to receive approvals for multiple biopesticides in the US, and we believe we are the smallest company to achieve the ambitious goal of registering three active ingredients and two formulated products at once, thereby opening up one of the world’s most important markets for agricultural inputs.”

The company has had a successful summer, last month it reported it expects half year revenues to rise approximately 33 per cent, to around £1 million, and it is on track to meet full year guidance of £1.4 million.

Read more - Oxford's Eden Research on track for £1.4m revenue