Eden Research plc Fungicide product approved for sale in France (7788U)

TIDMEDEN

RNS Number : 7788U

Eden Research plc

23 January 2017

Eden Research Plc

("Eden" or "Company")

Fungicide product approved for sale in France

Environmentally friendly product to combat botrytis (grape rot)

in one of the world's largest wine producing nations

Eden Research plc (AIM: EDEN), the AIM-listed company that provides breakthrough natural bio-control products and microencapsulation technologies to the global agrochemicals, animal health and consumer products industries, announces that is has received authorisation in France for its first product, 3AEY, for use in the prevention and treatment of botrytis in table and wine grapes. 3AEY will be sold in France by Eden partner SumiAgro France under the brand name "Mevalone(TM)".

This is a significant and long-awaited milestone for the Company and will allow SumiAgro France to sell Mevalone to its established customers. Mevalone is a terpene-based fungicide that can prevent and treat botrytis, a widespread fungal disease that causes grey mould on many fruits and vegetables leading to the rapid loss of commercially valuable crops. The average losses from affected crops account for around 20% of the total harvest, costing producers between EUR10-100 billion annually worldwide, depending upon weather conditions. The market for Botryticides alone is more than $350 million per annum.

Sean Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Eden, said: "France is one of the leading wine producers in the world and is certainly one of the most prestigious, not only because of the quantity of wine produced but also the intense focus upon quality production. We are delighted that Mevalone is registered and available for sale in 2017 in this important market. Since we signed the agreement with SumiAgro in late 2014, there has been a lot of work by both parties to ensure that we could achieve this key product registration as quickly as possible, and we are pleased to have realised this ambition with the strong support of SumiAgro France.

"Following marketing trials undertaken in 2015 and 2016, Mevalone has been well received by customers throughout the EU southern zone. The unique characteristics that Mevalone has in terms of its safety and environmental profile, efficacy and exemption from Maximum Residue Limits make it an interesting and useful product for growers. This is particularly relevant in the late stages of the growing season when botrytis can be prevalent and where many alternative products cannot be used due to residue issues, leaving growers with few options in the last few weeks before harvest due to the long pre-harvest intervals associated with many competing fungicides. Mevalone is also an extremely useful tool in managing the resistance of pests to many common conventional fungicides."

Antoine Meyer, President of SumiAgro France, said: "We are delighted by the Eden Research team's support to the project and the fruitful cooperation with the French Authorities and Regulatory Agencies to bring this innovative biocontrol solution to French growers and worldwide wine consumers. Mevalone fits growers and consumers market demands in terms of performance and characteristics. I strongly believe that the uniqueness of the Mevalone technology provides outstanding and long-desired benefits to the French wine producers and exporters. "

Change of Registered Office

In addition, the Company announces that its Registered Office has been changed to: 6 Priory Court, Priory Court Business Park, Poulton, Cirencester GL7 5JB.

The announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014.

 
Eden Research plc                                 www.edenresearch.com 
Sean Smith, Chief Executive                         Tel: [phone] 
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Alex Abrey, Chief Financial 
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Stephane Auton/Patrick                              Tel: [phone] 
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Walbrook PR Ltd              Tel: [phone] or [e-mail] 
Paul McManus                                        Mob: [phone] 
Lianne Cawthorne                                    Mob: [phone] 
 

Notes:

Eden Research is a technology development and commercialisation company with intellectual property and expertise in encapsulation, terpenes and environmentally friendly technologies to provide naturally occurring solutions for the global agrochemicals, animal health, and consumer product industries.

Eden's encapsulation technology harnesses the biocidal efficacy of naturally occurring chemicals produced by plants (terpenes) and can also be used with both natural and synthetic compounds to enhance their performance and ease-of-use. The technology uses yeast cells that are a by-product of numerous commercial production processes to deliver a slow release of natural compounds for agricultural and non-agricultural uses. Terpenes are already widely used in the food flavouring, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries.

Historically, terpenes have had limited commercial use in the agrochemical sector due to their volatility, phytotoxicity and poor solubility. Eden's platform encapsulation technology provides a unique, environmentally friendly solution to these problems and enables terpenes to be used as effective, low-risk agrochemicals.

With leading consultants in their respective fields, the Company is developing these technologies through innovative research and a series of commercial production, marketing and distribution partnerships.

The Company has a number of patents and a pipeline of products at differing stages of development targeting specific areas of the global agrochemicals industry. To date, the Company has invested in the region of GBP12m in developing and protecting its intellectual property and seeking regulatory approval for products that rely upon the Company's technologies. Revenues earned by the Company have been modest whilst the Company has concentrated on securing patent protection for its intellectual property, gaining regulatory approvals, identifying suitable industrial partners, and entering into commercial agreements.

In May 2013, the three actives that comprise Eden's first commercial product, 3AEY, were approved as new ingredients for use in plant protection products. This represents a major milestone in the commercialisation of Eden's technology and is a significant accomplishment for any company. To illustrate this point, one should note that in all of 2013, Eden's approvals represented 3 of only 10 new active ingredients approved by the EC.

3AEY has been authorised for sale in Kenya, Malta, Greece, Bulgaria, Spain, Italy and France.

Eden was admitted to trading on AIM on 11 May 2012 and trades under the symbol EDEN.

For more information about Eden, please visit: www.edenresearch.com

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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January 23, 2017 02:00 ET (07:00 GMT)