Bee Vectoring Technology Helps Crops Grow; Partnerships Help BVT Grow

Disseminated on behalf of: Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc.

BVT revolutionizes crop management with targeted pest and disease control that is environmentally friendly and safe for bees to deliver.

A growing global population presents myriad challenges and at least one critical need: food — enough food, food that is clean and safe, and food that is produced sustainably.

Agriculture has a critical role to play and innovation is required within the industry to address issues of production and environmental footprint, from water consumption to chemical residues.

Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc. BEE BEVVF is one such innovator, pioneering an all-natural approach using commercially reared and managed bumblebees and honeybees as delivery agents for disease- and pest-control solutions. Its proprietary biofungicide, Vectorite™ with CR-7, is carried by bees and directly applied to the flowers of various crops, combating diseases and protecting the fruit's development.

BVT also produces seed and foliar treatments using its proprietary microbe, Clonostachys rosea CR-7 (CR-7), and is focusing on partnerships with multinational agriculture companies that will extend its reach through further testing and expanded distribution, to significantly increase its addressable market, and accelerate its revenue growth.

A bigger, better crop yield

This is how one aspect of BVT's technology works: The company places commercial beehives on the land of its farmer customers at the start of blooming season. As bees exit the hives, they move through a natural organic compound, Clonostachys rosea strain CR-7, which attaches to their bodies. When the bees pollinate flowers, the CR-7 microbe in the Vectorite powder falls into the bloom, colonizing the plant tissue and replicating to provide protection for the fruit from pests and diseases (CR-7 doesn't kill a fungus that's harmful to fruit but "out-competes" it for space on the plant so it can't grow).

"The fundamental thing that BVT is doing is producing a better crop," said Ashish Malik, CEO of BVT, defining "a better crop" as "increasing yields per acre for farmers and reducing chemical residues, a benefit that also directly impacts consumers positively."

"We are really replicating a natural process," he explained. "We've got a plant-symbiotic microbe that we have isolated from the thousands of other microbes you find in the soil. And it's 100% natural — we don't alter it in any way, we don't do any genetic modification."

In addition to boosting crop yields by approximately 30%, BVT’s CR-7 and its delivery system also meet crucial environmental criteria. There are no water consumption or greenhouse gas emissions associated with its application, and it leaves no chemical residues behind, safeguarding soil health and biodiversity. This is possible due to the absence of chemicals in Vectorite and its precise delivery by bees.

A natural process, a natural product

A commercially-reared and managed honeybee pollinating and delivering BVT's proprietary biofungicide Vectorite with CR-7 to a blackberry bloom in a California crop field.  

"We're utilizing a natural process to deliver a natural product," said Michael Collinson, BVT's Executive Chairman. "Our system continuously deploys micro amounts of product, with pinpoint accuracy, throughout the bloom period rather than intermittent spraying of an entire field."

Collinson also noted that the system doesn't require hugely expensive farm equipment and, in fact, this makes it a powerful possibility for the application of other biological agricultural aids that are in development across the industry.

That industry is increasingly embracing BVT's suite of products — notably its CR-7 seed and foliar treatments — as it aggressively moves toward strategic partnerships. It recently announced trials in Spain, Mexico and South Africa. As well, the company reached a commercial agreement with BioSafe, an industry leader in environmentally sustainable products, to develop and market biological products for plant health and control of foliar and soil diseases.

"This is exactly what our multinational partners are looking for: large addressable markets with significant crop breadth, wide geography and an array of application methods," said Malik.

Growing plants and partnerships

BVT has been developing its partnership strategy for some time, Malik said, explaining that the company could either spend time and significant capital building its own sales force and distribution channels; or scale its business faster by partnering with more established companies that have existing global commercial infrastructure. BVT chose the latter, opting for increased global reach and rapid revenue scale-up offered by a portfolio of partnerships.

"You can access various markets using this strategy," he said, noting that BVT partners are in "countries that are primarily producing export crops, so things like managing chemical residues for the farmers in those countries is a very important criterion, and therefore they're looking for more environmentally responsible solutions."

"Our partners are very excited about this technology and they're willing to do the development work," which includes in-house testing as well as advancing regulatory approvals to go with BVT's existing US EPA registration and dozens of granted patents.

All of this makes Malik and Collinson optimistic about the adoption of CR-7 across a variety of markets and geographic regions as well as BVT's future and its attractiveness to investors — and more potential Big Ag partners.

"We've got the technology that the industry is looking for," Malik said. "We're developing something unique that's hitting the radar of the big guys."

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