Managing the health of the crop microbiome

Microorganisms have a key role in the health and yield of crop plants –  FOLIUM Science’ has been collaborating with John Innes Centre, to see how the crop microbiome can be enhanced to reduce the use of pesticides and boost the performance and resilience of plants.

The project evaluated the effect of the company’s Guided Biotics® technology on the yield of tomato plants and on the control of Pseudomonas syringae and Xanthomonas.

In this article Ed Fuchs of FOLIUM Science provides an update on the company’s Guided Biotics® technology and the benefits that it can bring for growers and producers.

Guided Biotics – target unwanted bacteria

FOLIUM Science’s Guided Biotics technology has a very precise mode of action that can target unwanted bacteria in the plant microbiome.

Once the unwanted bacteria are removed this generates space for the “good” bacteria in the microbiome to flourish and strengthen their colonization of the plant. This creates a naturally healthy microbiome that will result in increased yield and improved crop performance

A global food crisis

The United Nations has declared that food production needs to double by 2050 to meet the demands of the world’s growing population.

However, productivity is often constrained by disease, blights, fungal infections, viruses and bacteria.

It is estimated that 70% of crops carry pesticide residues which not only creates consumer concerns but can also have a damaging and lasting impact on the environment. The lead time for the development of new, safe pesticides is 11 years at an average cost of $286m.

Other solutions include copper based chemical treatments, however these will kill all bacteria present in the plant, good and bad, and can drive resistance amongst bacteria.

Managing the Crop Microbiome

In the face of these challenges, increased focus is being given to the microbiome of crops and to technology that can modulate or regulate the microbiome to support the good health of the plant.

Robb Fraley, Monsanto’s chief technology officer, compared this new approach to plant health to recent breakthroughs in human health. “The human microbiome has been a breakthrough for human medicine,” he says. “I think the crop microbiome will become a breakthrough for crop production.”

Guided Biotics use a natural host that lives in the plant and that conjugates with many species of bacteria. It is designed to target and kill selected pathogens but cannot replicate or transfer genetic material on its own.

Successful plant trials with John Innes Centre

Between 2018 and 2021, Innovate UK funded FOLIUM Science to lead a project supported by John Innes Centre to evaluate the effect of Guided Biotics on the yield of tomato plants and on the control of Pseudomonas syringae and Xanthomonas.

The work showed that Guided Biotics, when applied directly to the plant, can increase tomato yield in the greenhouse compared to an untreated control. It was believed that this was because of a faster maturity rate amongst the treated plants.  Application of Guided Biotics® in glass house trials showed performance increased in two tomato varieties.

With 12 million acres of tomatoes planted globally, the opportunity for a technology that can improve yields is enormous. A 10% increase in yield could deliver as much as $6,000 per acre in additional value to the grower.

The work on Pseudomonas was particularly innovative as it demonstrated that Guided Biotics^® can be sprayed precisely and directly onto a plant using unmanned robotic drones that are controlled by artificial intelligence systems.

The use of natural biological systems gives the technology great commercial scope as it is considered non-GMO by regulatory authorities such as Brazil.

FOLIUM Science’s vision for Guided Biotics

The potential for technology that can remove unwanted pathogens is huge. The value of the chemical crop protection market is $60bn with an annual growth rate of 11%. Biopesticides are valued at $3bn and are growing at 15% per year.

FOLIUM Science envisages that the application of Guided Biotics would be beneficial for precise farming techniques, point application spraying or seed treatments or with difficult to solve bacterial problems such as citrus greening or Xyella.

There are also opportunities for high value crops such as marijuana or in vineyards and horticulture.

Guided Biotics technology is on the frontier of modulating the plant microbiome. Success has already been demonstrated in trials on tomato plants and potential exists across a broad spectrum of plant pathogens.

FOLIUM Science welcomes conversations with interested parties to develop the potential of this innovative technology and exploit it in a commercially relevant application.