Changing regulations around gene editing are helping drive a renewed wave of investment into crop genetics, according to Dr Cian Duggan, co-founder and CEO of Resurrect Bio.
Regulatory change fuels renewed interest
Speaking to AgNavigator at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London, Duggan said regulatory developments in the Americas, the UK and the EU have created fresh opportunities for companies developing disease-resistant crops.
“The regulations are a big piece,” he said.
Reviving plants’ natural immune systems
Resurrect Bio is developing a platform that uses gene editing to restore disease-resistance genes that already exist within crop germplasm.
According to Duggan, plants possess sophisticated immune systems made up of receptors capable of detecting pathogens and pests, but some of these natural defences have been overcome over time as diseases evolve.
“What we do is find those defeated resistance genes and design edits to restore them,” he explained.
The company is targeting major crop diseases including Asian soybean rust, soybean cyst nematode, potato blight and several diseases affecting corn.
Resurrect Bio has already published research and patent applications supporting its approach and says it has generated proof-of-concept results in both potato and tomato.
Corporates become agtech’s financial backbone
Duggan also argued that corporate investors are becoming increasingly important to the health of the agtech ecosystem.
While venture funding remains challenging, he believes corporate venture capital funds are providing crucial support for start-ups seeking to commercialise new technologies.
“Corporate venture capital is really the linchpin of agtech investment at the moment,” he said. “Without it, I think we would be in a really dire place.”
He advised founders to think strategically about financing, combining corporate investment with grants, public funding and other non-dilutive sources of capital where possible.
Agribusinesses open to outside innovation
The comments come as major agribusinesses become more willing to collaborate with external innovators rather than relying solely on in-house research and development.
According to Duggan, large companies have recognised that start-ups can help de-risk emerging technologies through partnerships and investment relationships.
“What I think we’re seeing now is them really starting to embrace it,” he said.
That trend has benefited Resurrect Bio, which has already secured partnerships with seed companies including Bejo and is expanding development programmes across tomato, potato, soybean, corn and spinach.
The shift is also coinciding with changing investor priorities, as funding moves away from some of the sectors that dominated the last agtech investment cycle.
“There’s been some change in interest in how to deploy capital,” Duggan said. “Maybe less on precision ag, less on vertical farming and more onto traits, disease resistance and seed technologies.”
World Agri-Tech London Webinar: Event Intel Unwrapped
This interview was conducted at the recent World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London. The full on-camera interview with Cian Duggan, alongside discussions with other industry experts, will be featured in AgNavigator’s World Agri-Tech Unwrapped webinar on 4 November. The webinar will also be available on demand. Register for free here
