Boston-based Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings Inc. has closed its $83 million deal with Bayer AG to take over its West Sacramento Bayer Crop Science biologics research and development site.
The two companies came to an agreement in July for Ginkgo (NYSE: DNA) to buy Bayer’s 175,000-square-foot West Sacramento main building with its employees, and for the companies to work together on new technologies in agriculture.
“Biological solutions play a critical role in the agricultural innovation ecosystem, and we see tremendous opportunity for these products to add even more value for agriculture in the future,” said Robert Reiter, head of research and development at Bayer’s Crop Science division, in a news release. “The open innovation approach will accelerate the product pipeline and will make sure that we bring high-quality biological solutions and innovative technologies to the market faster.”
Biological controls are biological sourced materials to replace chemicals in pest control and nutrition in agriculture.
All of Bayer Crop Science's employees in West Sacramento are now Ginkgo employees at its expanded biologicals unit, said Jonathon O’Leary, a spokesperson for Ginkgo, via email. He couldn’t say how many employees are at that site. There were about 150 a year ago.
The deal included the main research building at 890 Embarcadero Drive, as well as 25,000 square feet of scientific greenhouses in the same office park, O’Leary said.
The new Ginkgo operation in West Sacramento will be led by Magalie Guilhabert, a vice president and head of the agriculture department at Ginkgo.
Guilhabert had been head of microbial research technologies at Bayer in West Sacramento, where she worked since 2012. Before that, she worked for six years at AgraQuest Inc., which was the Davis-based biological controls pioneering company Bayer bought in 2012 for $500 million to get into the biologics space. Guilhabert earned her doctorate in plant pathology from the University of California Davis.
Ginkgo Bioworks uses genetic engineering to create microbes with agricultural or industrial applications.
As part of the deal, Bayer and Ginkgo will partner to develop biologics for agriculture.
Joyn Bio, a joint venture created by Bayer and Ginkgo Bioworks in 2017 and seeded with $100 million, will be integrated into Ginkgo Bioworks. Joyn has offices in Boston and labs in Woodland.
As part of the agreement, Bayer retains the right to commercialize Joyn’s nitrogen fixing technology. Nitrogen is a powerful fertilizer, but synthetic nitrogen is expensive and can run off fields into water systems. Having biological organisms that are able to capture free nitrogen from the air and soil to make nitrogen compounds is seen as a breakthrough for biologics research. Nitrogen is the most abundant element in the atmosphere.
“Ginkgo is committed to harnessing the power of programmable biology to enable sustainable food production and food security worldwide,” said Jason Kelly, CEO and co-founder of Ginkgo, in a news release.
