Biotalys Obtains New Fungicide Resistance Class for its First Biofungicide

Evoca’s novel mode of action is now formally listed as new tool for growers to manage resistance to fungicides

Ghent, Belgium, May 03, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Press release

Biotalys (Euronext - BTLS), an Agricultural Technology (AgTech) company protecting crops and food with protein-based biocontrol solutions, today announces that the Fungicide Resistance Action Committee (FRAC) granted an entirely new class for the active ingredient of its first biofungicide, Evoca™*. This new classification, granted by a highly-reputed international panel of renown technical experts, demonstrates to growers that Evoca will be a new tool that complements existing biological and conventional crop protection solutions to fight the fungal diseases Botrytis and powdery mildew.

Evoca is an innovative protein-based biofungicide developed on Biotalys’ AGROBODY Foundry™ platform that helps control fungal diseases such as Botrytis and powdery mildew in fruits and vegetables. Evoca will provide growers with a new rotation partner in integrated pest management (IPM) programs, reducing the dependency on chemical pesticides. Demonstrating its strong performance via more than 500 independent and company-driven field and greenhouse trials across multiple regions, pathogens and crops, Evoca is expected to obtain regulatory approval by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) later this year.

Defined as a polypeptide in the recently published 2022 FRAC Code List (under F10), the bioactive in Evoca earned a new classification after providing in-depth scientific evidence supporting its features as a novel mode of action targeting membrane integrity of the fungal pathogen, differentiating the bioactive from existing chemicals, microbials and plant extracts while offering a distinctive new tool to manage pathogen resistance development.

"Resistance to existing crop protection solutions continues to significantly impact growers’ ability to efficiently protect crops and food, and finding new modes of action is becoming more important than ever – especially for complex, and often yield devastating, pathogens like Botrytis and powdery mildew,” said Luc Maertens, COO of Biotalys. "Resistance has already developed for most available chemical fungicides targeting these diseases, and while most new products fall under existing categories, Evoca is in a new class of its own providing growers with a new tool in their toolbox to protect their crops.”

FRAC is an international panel of industry experts, advising globally on the best practices with and effectiveness of fungicides to limit crop losses as fungicide resistance continues to be a top challenge for farmers. FRAC members are recognized industry experts in the field of fungicide resistance. They are actively engaged in scientific work and discussions and are frequent contributors at scientific symposia. The FRAC Mode of Action (MoA) classification provides growers, advisors, extension staff, consultants and crop protection professionals with a guide to the selection of fungicides for use in an effective and sustainable fungicide resistance management strategy (for more information, see https://www.frac.info/fungicide-resistance-management/background).
"In the past decade, very few fungicide products introduced on the market have earned an entirely new fungicide resistance class like Evoca. Our team’s hard work and dedication hereby resulted in a further validation of our AGROBODY Foundry technology as a platform that can provide new modes of action against key agricultural and food pathogens,” added Patrice Sellès, CEO of Biotalys. "Our protein-based biocontrols are designed to help fill the current gaps in growers’ crop protection efforts and continue to pave the way toward an era of safer and more sustainable food production.”

* Evoca™: Pending Registration. This product is not currently registered for sale or use in the United States, the European Union, or elsewhere and is not being offered for sale.

About Biotalys

Biotalys is an Agricultural Technology (AgTech) company protecting crops and food with proprietary protein-based biocontrol solutions and aiming to provide alternatives to conventional chemical pesticides for a more sustainable and safer food supply. Based on its novel AGROBODY™ technology platform, Biotalys is developing a strong and diverse pipeline of effective product candidates with a favorable safety profile that aim to address key crop pests and diseases across the whole value chain, from soil to plate. Biotalys was founded in 2013 as a spin-off from the VIB (Flanders Institute for Biotechnology) and is listed on Euronext Brussels since July 2021. The company is based in the biotech cluster in Ghent, Belgium. More information can be found on www.biotalys.com.

For further information, please contact

Toon Musschoot, Head of IR & Communication
T: +32 (0)9 274 54 00
E: Toon.Musschoot@biotalys.com

Important Notice

This announcement contains statements which are "forward-looking statements" or could be considered as such. These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words ‘aim’, 'believe', 'estimate', 'anticipate', 'expect', 'intend', 'may', 'will', 'plan', 'continue', 'ongoing', 'possible', 'predict', 'plans', 'target', 'seek', 'would' or 'should', and contain statements made by the company regarding the intended results of its strategy. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and readers are warned that none of these forward-looking statements offers any guarantee of future performance. The Biotalys actual results may differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking statements. Biotalys makes no undertaking whatsoever to publish updates or adjustments to these forward-looking statements, unless required to do so by law.

Attachments

• Press Release - Biotalys Obtains New Fungicide Resistance Class for its First Biofungicide - 3 May 2022
• Persbericht - Biotalys krijgt nieuwe resistentieklasse voor zijn eerste biofungicide - 3 mei 2022