The next generation in agricultural pest control: Nano-bodies as bio insecticides

Date:01-17-2025

In today's agriculture, chemical pest control is the main solution for eliminating pests but often the damage outweighs the benefits. Chemical pesticides significantly harm the environment, various animals, and groundwater. A farmer spraying chemicals is also exposed to high toxicity. Consumers of fruits and vegetables are developing awareness of chemicals in food, and more of them select their purchases according to how crops have been grown. Regulation follows suit: in the US and Europe, regulatory pressure is already being applied to reduce the use of chemical pesticides in agriculture.

Above and beyond all this, there is also an evolutionary element to consider: the more chemicals we use, the more insects that are resistant to it, survive and multiply. This results in a need to use ever more toxic chemicals in increasing concentrations. To break this resistance cycle and address other chemical pest control damages, the market began turning to biological pest control which offers more effective methods.

An effective tool against various pests

One company offering such a solution is IBI-Ag, which developed technology for biological crop protection reducing environmental harm. The idea is to adapt technology which is accepted in the medical world—using antibodies for various purposes—for the agricultural market, to protect plants from pests.

"The antibodies we developed can be sprayed in the field to control pests in a different mode of action than chemical pesticides," explains Dr. Arnon Heyman, company CEO. "In this way, we bypass pest resistance and crops are better protected, reducing environmental damage and protecting the food chain."

"Using our technology, environmentally friendly nano-bodies are sprayed in the field. These are proteins—a natural material that breaks down quickly and doesn't cause harm to beneficial insects, rodents, mammals or add contamination to groundwater," adds Dr. Rony Oren Benaroya, co-founder and CTO of the company. "Our technology enables producing tiny antibodies, ten times smaller than regular antibodies used in the medical world. This makes it possible to develop products at a competitive price for the agricultural market. Thanks to antibody miniaturization, each gram of our product contains ten times more active units. This helps us achieve lower production costs and higher efficiency."

Dr. Heyman adds: "The nano-bodies bind to a target protein in the insect's gut, which is essential for the insect's life. The result leads to inhibition and neutralization of the target, followed by termination of the pest. The mechanism of action focuses on damaging the insect's digestive system, unlike most chemical materials that affect the nervous system. We also use artificial intelligence to adapt and optimize our nano-bodies and improve product properties. The development involves adapted formulation to maintain product stability and long-term storage capability. The treatment is relevant to almost any crop—even when dealing with a very specific caterpillar or aphid. The technology is broad enough to treat various pests and it is not limited to a particular crop."

Unique value proposition

IBI-Ag was established in 2017 by a joint fund created by the global Ag giant, Bayer, and the Israeli VC, Trendlines. The purpose of the fund was to invest in Israeli Ag-tech startups, and IBI-Ag was the first company established within this framework. The company is now raising its Series A, led by one of the world's leading agricultural companies and joined by the Israel Innovation Authority with significant funding.

Dr. Nitza Kardish, CEO of the Trendlines Fund: "We invest in technologies according to needs defined by strategic market players and guide the company from its inception to successful product launch."

"Results are already demonstrated, and future customers are collaborating with us in developing various products," says Dr. Heyman. "We know with certainty that our developed nano-bodies are effective against various harmful insects, including caterpillars and aphids, thanks to successful greenhouse trials we conducted, which

enabled us to make progress and enter field trials. We began regulatory testing this year. We already see that the biological pest control market, which is expected to reach $11.2 billion by 2027, shows interest in our development, with its innovative mechanisms of action and several families of patents in the registration process. We've already signed significant collaboration agreements with Bayer and Nufarm, and our fundraising round is led by a strategic world leading Ag-tech company."

Dr. Oren Benaroya: "This is the first platform of its kind for biological control of harmful agricultural insects. Currently, there are several products in the development pipeline, some of which are intended to begin registration procedures this year. The company is in the process of scaling up its production processes."

Is the development relevant for use worldwide?

Dr. Heyman: "Absolutely, already today, the insects we treat—caterpillars and aphids—are worldwide pests. What guides the path to different territories is market size and regulation. There are regions in the world where it's simpler to register biological products, so these are the first places to approach, like North and South America. After that, we'll reach areas where regulatory processes are more complex, like Europe. We're also targeting the Israeli market; here we can register the products after US registration."

What are your marketing plans?

Dr. Heyman: "The business model follows two main paths: The first is collaborations and distribution licenses to global companies. The second is registering several products in specific markets and selling them through local distributors. In both cases, it's a B2B model, whether selling to a local distributor who does the marketing or licensing to global distributors who take the product to their regions to sell."

Dr. Benaroya: "we offer a unique value proposition, bringing our disruptive technology approach to agricultural pest control. Investors joining our fundraising round will enjoy a golden opportunity at both the business level and in helping secure the global food chain."