Ag Biotech Among NC's 'SuperScieNCe' Economic Drivers

By Barry Teater, NCBiotech Writer


Photo courtesy NCSU

Feeding a global population that will reach 9 billion people by 2050 will require every acre of food crops to be more productive. Genetically engineered crops that can resist pests and disease, grow in harsh conditions and yield more food will be a major solution, and nowhere is there more expertise, innovation and activity in this technology than in North Carolina.

A study of the state’s life science landscape lists crop genetic engineering as one of six emerging life science technology sectors likely to flourish into the future. The Battelle Technology Partnership Practice identified the areas based on its analysis of innovation, research and industry activity among the state’s universities and companies. The North Carolina Biotechnology Center has labeled the six “SuperSciNCe.”

The state has more than 80 agricultural biotechnology companies, large and small,  employing 8,700 people, and another 900 ag-related support organizations. Many of these companies are devoted to improving crop plants and putting plants to work in new, novel ways through genetic engineering and related technologies.

Five of the six world leaders in plant ag biotech -- BASF Plant Science, Bayer CropScience, DuPont Pioneer, Monsanto and Syngenta --have operations in North Carolina, and three of them -- BASF, Bayer and Syngenta -- have their global or North American headquarters in the state.  

Bayer CropScience has invested $110 million in recent expansions at its global seeds headquarters in Research Triangle Park including state-of-the-art greenhouses for research on seed traits, insect testing, nematode traits and plant diseases.

BASF established its global Plant Science headquarters in Research Triangle Park after more than a decade of successful R&D work at its North American headquarters there.  The company is working to improve crop yield and tolerance to stresses such as drought and floods.

Syngenta Biotechnology has undertaken two expansions of its R&D campus in Research Triangle Park totaling $164 million since 2011 and plans to add 150 more employees by 2019.

While these international giants expand, small and mid-sized companies are carving out niches in plant biotechnology across North Carolina, not only for food and fiber production, but also for medicines and industrial products. For example:

  • Precision PlantSciences of Durham has developed genome editing technology for inserting, removing and modifying DNA at essentially any location in a complex plant genome, yielding desirable traits in row crops, biofuel feedstocks and other plants. The company closed on a $25.6 million Series A financing in May 2015.
  • AgBiome of Research Triangle Park is probing the microbiome of crops to identify microbes or microbial genes that could be harnessed to reduce crop risks and improve yields.  Syngenta, Monsanto, and Novozymes have taken equity ownership positions in AgBiome.
  • SoyMeds of Davidson is developing a seed-based expression platform that enables production of protein targets that can be used to diagnose and treat disease and address other unmet needs in the healthcare industry.
  • Nova Synthetix of Durham is developing and commercializing a nontoxic castor plant that produces a unique fatty acid used as a high-value chemical feedstock.
  • Benson Hill Biosystems of Research Triangle Park is focused on increasing crop productivity, by genetically enhancing photosynthesis, and has formed company partnerships for work to increase yields in corn, wheat, sugarcane and potatoes.
  • Edison Agrosciences of Chapel Hill is engineering crop yield improvements and the plant-based production of industrial materials, with a primary focus on alternative rubber crops from sunflowers.

Get more information on North Carolina's successful merging of agriculture and biotech, the state's two largest economic drivers, from NCBiotech's AgBiotech Initiative.

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