Creve Coeur agriculture technology startup NewLeaf Symbiotics, which has developed products to boost crop growth, has raised $45 million from investors to pursue expansion.
Swedish investment firm Gullspång Re:food led NewLeaf’s $45 million Series D funding round. Other investors in the deal include Otter Capital Partners LP, S2G Ventures and Leaps by Bayer.
Based at BRDG Park at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center campus, NewLeaf develops and commercializes products that include beneficial plant microbes designed to improve crop nutrition and yield. It has developed technology called pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs (PPFM), which NewLeaf says form “a symbiotic relationship with the plant as it emerges and grows,” helping to improve the health of a crop.
NewLeaf said in a news release its funding comes as it expects to increase its product portfolio and estimates an uptick in the usage of its products. NewLeaf has launched commercially with products for soy and corn crops, saying its products were used on 800,000 acres in crop year 2022, a figure that grew to 3.5 million acres in 2023. NewLeaf projects its products will be applied on an estimated 11 million acres in 2024.
"This round of funding is a testament to the science-led, proven performance of NewLeaf PPFM technology," said Brent Smith, president and CEO of NewLeaf. ”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.”
Research and development will also be a priority for new leaf, which said it plans to advance efforts to bring new products to market. It said it will focus on a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-registered pesticide product to mitigate rootworm in corn crops, technologies for peanut and cotton crops, as well as products geared around rice yield, nitrogen efficiency and methane reduction. NewLeaf says it has filed more than 200 patents since its founding.
