InnerPlant Receives USDA Approval for Its Leading Commercial Product

This is a milestone on the path to the commercialization of cultivars that emit optical signals -- detectable even from space -- when under attack by pathogens or with a lack of water or nutrients.

19.07.2023 | 14:42 (UTC -3)
Sean Yokomizo, Cultivar edition

InnerPlant announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has approved several requests for regulatory status reviews (RSR).

These approvals include: (a) InnerPlant's first commercial product, a soybean mold sensor currently in field testing with farmer trials scheduled for 2024 and on track for commercial launch in 2025; (b) an "always-on" soybean that emits a constant signal used in the crop development process and to calibrate and refine detection capabilities.

“USDA approval confirms our due diligence regarding the safety of our technology and reduces the time and complexity of our commercial development cycle,” explains Randy Shultz, Ph.D., senior vice president of R&D and commercialization at InnerPlant .

InnerPlant develops cultivars that produce proteins when under attack by pathogens or when there is a lack of water or specific nutrients. According to the company, "these proteins emit optical signals - detectable from as far away as space - that show farmers exactly what kind of help plants need within 48 hours of the onset of stress." This means anticipation of up to two weeks before stress is visible in the field.

Studies show that farmers lose up to 40% of their income or US$220 billion worldwide due to pathogens, according to the company.

InnerPlant's new seed technology offers traits that directly tap into plant physiology and provide farmers with specific data for certain stresses.

Today's announcement relates to others involving key areas of the ecosystem, including deal with Satellogic to launch a space-based signal detection device in Q2023 XNUMX; and offering InnerPlant traits for elite soybean germplasm with Mertec, LLC.

More information about plant communication can be found at: plants "talk" to each other.

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