24 February 2021- Early this year, biotechnology company Agrivida appeared on the feed additives industry’s radar in a major way with the signature of a commercial and R&D partnership with Novus International.
Of course, for attentive observers of the industry’s movements, Agrivida did not come out of nowhere. In fact, Novus International veteran Dan Meagher took a six-year pause from his career at the US feed additive giant to serve as Agrivida’s Chief Executive Officer, before returning to Novus as that company’s CEO. Moreover, having been founded in 2003, Agrivida has built up its science and competencies over nearly two decades.
Instead, what is new is the nutritional concept Agrivida is pioneering—an idea which could replace a significant chunk of the US’s enzyme supplements with specially engineered corn which delivers phytase and carbohydrase directly inside the grain itself. To better understand this concept and what it means for the feed additives industry, Feedinfo spoke with R. Michael Raab, Founder and President of Agrivida.
[Feedinfo] What specific enzymes are you currently able to engineer into crops such as corn? At what levels are these enzymes found in the corn? Is this enough to fully replace external supplementation?
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[Michael Raab] In principle, any enzyme can be engineered into corn using Agrivida’s GRAINZYME® technology. Production levels vary depending on the specific enzyme, how it was engineered, and selection of the specific production line, however common levels range from 0.5 mg of enzyme to 20 mg of enzyme per gram of corn grain. At these production levels, relatively small amounts of Agrivida GRAINZYME® products can fully replace external supplementation of feed enzymes. |
R. Michael Raab |
[Feedinfo] We’ve long seen breeders and genetic engineers working to manipulate the levels of nutrients such as amino acids in their crops. How is what you’re doing different, in scale or quality, from that work?
[Michael Raab] At a conceptual level it is very similar—we are optimizing the composition of the crop for use in animal nutrition and to help improve animal health. However, our approach and strategy for using this technology in the marketplace is quite different from previous efforts that focused on manipulating the concentrations of bulk feed ingredients and additives such as amino acids, starch, or oil. In those previous efforts, the engineered corn made up the entire amount of corn in the diet, offsetting the need to provide additional exogenous ingredients (such as lysine). Our strategy is different in that we are focused on delivering high-value feed additives (such as phytase or NSP enzymes) in small amounts of corn, usually only at inclusion levels of several hundred grams. So, when a feed producer uses GRAINZYME® products, they can expect to add only several hundred grams per ton of feed, with the bulk of the corn in the ration being non- GRAINZYME® conventional corn.
[Feedinfo] What makes this approach superior to conventional methods of enzyme supplementation, in your opinion?
[Michael Raab] Agrivida’s novel and innovative technology delivers feed additives in a completely unique and sustainable way – directly inside of the grain. In using a natural carrier, in this case corn kernels, Agrivida has created a more sustainable and effective delivery system for additives. Where GRAINZYME® is concerned, producing enzymes in this manner is superior to fermentation production simply because it is more efficient and cost effective. Instead of using corn sugar to feed a fermentation with engineered microbes to produce these enzymes in huge steel tanks, then having to harvest and formulate the enzymes for stability, storage and delivery, we can have the corn itself produce the enzyme directly, which integrates seamlessly into existing feed production processes. A single corn line can produce multiple enzymes and additives, alleviating the need for multiple additions of different ingredients, which saves producers time, effort, and ultimately, money. Further, this mode of production reduces the environmental footprint associated with enzyme production, contributing to greater sustainability in food production.
[Feedinfo] “Biotechnology” is a wide-ranging term covering a few different technologies. Can you give any details about the specific techniques you are using to create GRAINZYME corn?
[Michael Raab] Modern biotechnology has existed for many years and has been used in many diverse applications ranging from life-saving medicines to more sustainable crops. Agrivida uses many of the same techniques incorporated into these other products to deliver GRAINZYME® technology for use in animal nutrition and health. By having access to the range of biotechnology tools, we have been able to select those that are most efficient and cost effective in order to bring our products to market.
[Feedinfo] Major feed markets around the world have greatly differing approaches to genetically engineered products in the food chain. Can you give an overview of where you are in terms of regulatory approvals in some of the biggest markets (US, EU, China, Brazil, Russia, etc.)?
[Michael Raab] Currently GRAINZYME® products are approved for use and sale in the U.S. One objective of the partnership is to identify regulatory pathways globally and secure regulatory approval in selected markets.
[Feedinfo] Where is Agrivida’s GRAINZYME corn currently being grown and fed? What kind of volumes are you currently commercialising?
[Michael Raab] GRAINZYME® corn is produced in controlled locations in the United States. These locations are selected for productivity, quality control and assurance, process efficiency, and locality to distribution centers and customers. Because the concentration of the enzyme is so high in GRAINZYME® corn, only several hundred acres need to be produced annually to satisfy the demand for feed enzymes in the U.S.
[Feedinfo] Which other enzymes (or other feed additives) are you aiming to add to your portfolio going forward? How soon could we expect that? Are there significant technological hurdles to overcome before that, or is it largely a question of the business case?
[Michael Raab] The partnership is focused on developing novel feed additives using the sustainable and natural delivery system of corn for animal health through nutrition. We are actively developing animal health products that address serious challenges in production, including coccidiosis and necrotic enteritis in poultry. In the coming years, and with Novus’s help, we hope to expand the GRAINZYME® animal nutrition offerings to include additional enzymes targeting all major substrates in animal diets. Our strategy is to deepen the portfolio of enzymes for poultry and swine segments, while also broadening our offerings to enter ruminant and aquaculture markets, establishing a robust business that provides solutions throughout the animal food chain.
This strategy builds on our existing business in animal nutrition. The initial products will focus on gut health, augmenting our efforts in the nutritional segments.
[Feedinfo] What are your objectives for the partnership with Novus? Will they be exclusively responsible for the commercialization of Agrivida products in certain markets, or will you continue to work with/look for other distributors?
[Michael Raab] By working with Novus, Agrivida has partnered with one of the premier players in animal nutrition products and services. Novus is renowned for their excellence in providing critical feed additives, including methionine and minerals, throughout the food chain. That excellence sets a strong foundation for a mutually beneficial partnership that includes developing innovative gut health products through our R&D collaboration, expanding the market for Agrivida’s current GRAINZYME® products, and ultimately creating the global supply chain for this new class of products. Partnering with Novus also enables Agrivida to focus on its core strengths in technology development and innovation.
[Feedinfo] What will your R&D collaboration look like? What are the priorities for this collaboration? What areas of Novus’s extensive expertise will be most useful?
[Michael Raab] The collaboration has three main priorities: supporting the expansion of existing products in current commercial applications, expanding the use of existing products into new market applications, and developing new products. Both companies will make important contributions to the collective commercial successes that will result from the R&D collaboration. Novus’s expertise in implementing targeted customer solutions will be critical in Agrivida’s on-going optimization of its existing products, as well as the conception, design, and development of novel products under our collaboration. Novus has a long and successful history of product development, particularly where the HMTBa molecule is concerned. Research teams at both companies are already working to test new products and applications.
Agrivida is very excited to be working with Novus, a global leader in animal nutrition. With its dedication to serving all parts of the industry, the goal to become a trusted advisor to its customers, and its strong focus on science and innovation, Novus has both the means and the desire to expand Agrivida’s reach faster and more efficiently than we could on our own. As a technology provider, Agrivida is developing products for entirely different markets and industries outside of animal nutrition and health that leverage the same technology and platforms.
