Cibus applauds the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023 passed in the United Kingdom

• Provisions of Act aim to facilitate development and marketing of gene edited crops in the United Kingdom

• The Act aligns regulation of new technologies such as Cibus’ gene editing platform to conventional breeding

Cibus, Inc. (Nasdaq: CBUS), a leading agricultural technology company that develops and licenses plant traits to seed companies for royalties, welcomed the passage of the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023 (the ″Act″) into law in the United Kingdom. The Act removes plants produced through precision breeding technologies from regulatory requirements applicable in England to the environmental release and marketing of GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms). It is expected to enable the development and marketing of gene edited crops in England. The Act introduces a simplified regulatory system for gene edited or ‘precision bred’ crops, which have been developed with targeted genetic changes that could have arisen through conventional breeding or other natural processes. The passing of the Act aligns England’s regulatory path for gene editing technologies with other countries that have enacted similar legislation that regulate traits from Cibus’ gene editing platform on a similar basis as traits developed using conventional breeding technologies.

″Cibus’ RTDS^® technology platform is designed to introduce traits into plants that could have occurred naturally, and can develop these traits years to decades faster than would have been possible through conventional breeding,″ stated Greg Gocal, PhD, Co-Founder, Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer at Cibus. ″This new law in the UK is an important milestone in developments globally to align regulations of new technologies like RTDS^® on a similar basis as conventional breeding.″

The Act is a major accomplishment of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in its efforts to unlock modern breeding technologies to improve food security, reduce pesticide use, and enhance climate-resilience in crops. DEFRA has been commended for enabling the agriculture industry in England to realize the benefits of gene editing to improve farming productivity and sustainability. In addition to the Act’s passage, paving the way for commercialization of gene edited crops, DEFRA has introduced new legislation to simplify research and development with gene edited crops. The new rules would enable field trials, which play a key role in trait development and are accordingly linked to improved crops better able to withstand changing environments and with reduced inputs such as fertilizers, fungicides, herbicides and pesticides. Productivity Traits such as these are the primary target of Cibus’ gene editing efforts.

″Field trials are a critical step in the development and validation of any new trait,″ stated Peter Beetham, PhD, President, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Cibus. ″The new rules proposed by DEFRA authorizing field trials in the UK mark progress towards similar legislation regarding gene edited traits for crops grown in the European market.″

About DEFRA

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom. DEFRA also represents the United Kingdom on agricultural, fisheries and environmental matters in international negotiations on sustainable development.

About RTDS

The Rapid Trait Development System^®, or RTDS, is Cibus’ patented gene editing technology platform. It is the core technology platform for Cibus’ Trait Machine™, the first standardized end-to-end semi-automated crop specific gene editing system that directly edits a seed company’s elite germplasm. The proprietary technologies integrate crop specific cell biology platforms with a series of gene editing technologies to enable a system of end-to-end crop specific precision breeding. The traits from the Trait Machine are indistinguishable from traits developed using conventional breeding or from nature.

Cibus believes that RTDS and the Trait Machine represent the technological breakthrough in plant breeding that is the ultimate promise of plant gene editing allowing the ability to change the scale and range of possible genetic solutions from breeding and with it, to develop desired characteristics or traits needed for greater farming sustainability and food security with greater speed and accuracy.

About Cibus

Cibus is a leading agricultural technology company that develops and licenses plant traits to seed companies for royalties. Cibus is a leader in the new era of gene-edited trait development, where plant traits (or specific genetic characteristics) that are indistinguishable from traits developed using traditional breeding are now created using gene editing. A key element of Cibus’ technology breakthrough is its patented RTDS^® technology platform: the Trait Machine™ - the industry’s first semi-automated stand-alone trait production facility. Cibus’ Trait Machine™ materially changes the speed, breadth, and scale of trait development. This breakthrough is central to Cibus’ vision for the Future of Breeding: ″High Throughput Gene Editing Systems operating as an extension of seed company breeding programs″. The ability to develop complex traits at a fraction of the time and cost of conventional breeding will be critical for addressing the sustainability challenges presented by climate change.