Agrivalle and Ginkgo Bioworks Enter Multiyear Strategic Partnership to Accelerate Next-Gen Ag Biological Products

SÃO PAULO and BOSTON, Dec. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Agrivalle, a leading Brazilian agricultural biologicals company, today announced a new partnership with Ginkgo Bioworks (NYSE: DNA), which is building the leading platform for cell programming and biosecurity. Together, the companies will collaborate on building cutting edge technologies to advance Agrivalle's biological products, including next-gen fertilizers and biocontrol agents.

Ginkgo is bringing its suite of advanced biology tools to the partnership with Agrivalle. Ginkgo will leverage its Strain Optimization Services to improve the efficacy of Agrivalle's biocontrol products. In planned future projects, Ginkgo intends to work with Agrivalle to discover and optimize plant-compatible microbes that can provide crop nutrition, and to engineer organisms that can make compounds to specifically target certain pests. This, in turn, could help Agrivalle enhance the breadth and efficacy of their novel biological products and enable them to sell and license products to major players in agriculture across the globe.

Growers continue to have an increased need for effective and sustainable alternatives to pest control products. Brazil has been home to massive growth in biologicals, thanks in part to regulatory frameworks that encourage innovation in the development of biologicals for sustainable agriculture. The Brazilian government has also made it easier for startups to finance manufacturing plants and to register biological products. This has led the country to become the largest biologicals market for agriculture, growing over 30% a year.

"We are so excited to partner with Agrivalle on getting groundbreaking biological products into the hands of growers," said Jason Kelly, co-founder and CEO of Ginkgo Bioworks. "Agrivalle is a vanguard of innovation in Brazil with proven R&D, manufacturing, and sales prowess, and we're thrilled to help them optimize and advance their products as they seek to expand globally."

"Choosing Ginkgo as a strategic partner will enable Agrivalle products to be at the forefront of agricultural excellence," said André Kraide, CEO of Agrivalle. "Having access to Ginkgo's demonstrated technical capabilities and expertise in biologicals R&D will help us take our products to the next level and support growers who seek superior bio-based technology."

To learn more about Ginkgo Strain Optimization Services, please visit https://www.ginkgobioworks.com/offerings/strain-optimization-services/.

About Ginkgo Bioworks
Ginkgo Bioworks is the leading horizontal platform for cell programming, providing flexible, end-to-end services that solve challenges for organizations across diverse markets, from food and agriculture to pharmaceuticals to industrial and specialty chemicals. Ginkgo's biosecurity and public health unit, Concentric by Ginkgo, is building global infrastructure for biosecurity to empower governments, communities, and public health leaders to prevent, detect and respond to a wide variety of biological threats. For more information, visit ginkgobioworks.com and concentricbyginkgo.com, read our blog, or follow us on social media channels such as X (formerly known as Twitter) (@Ginkgo and @ConcentricByGBW), Instagram (@GinkgoBioworks and @ConcentricByGinkgo), Threads (@GinkgoBioworks) or LinkedIn.

About Agrivalle
Agrivalle, a leading manufacturer of biologicals with two decades of experience, is a leader in regenerative agricultural systems that offers innovative, transformative, and sustainable solutions based on a diverse and multifunctional product portfolio. Located in Indaiatuba, São Paulo, Brazil, its manufacturing footprint exceeds 860,000 square feet and has an annual  production capacity of about 12 million gallons.

One of Agrivalle's major investments is in research and development. The company boasts an extensive genetic bank of microorganisms, with over 1,000 proprietary strains encompassing enormous biotechnological potential. With over 300 employees, the company works towards boosting productivity in the field and promoting more profitable and sustainable agriculture for producers. Agrivalle's portfolio includes biological pest control products and specialty fertilizers.

Agrivalle believes in life as a source of life and aims to contribute to the maintenance and balance of soil quality, plants, ecosystems, and their regeneration.

To learn more about Agrivalle, visit the website: https://agrivalle.com.br/

Forward-Looking Statements of Ginkgo Bioworks

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements regarding the capabilities and potential success of the partnership and Ginkgo's cell programming platform. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "can," "project," "potential," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "strategy," "future," "opportunity," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: (i) volatility in the price of Ginkgo's securities due to a variety of factors, including changes in the competitive and highly regulated industries in which Ginkgo operates and plans to operate, variations in performance across competitors, and changes in laws and regulations affecting Ginkgo's business, (ii) the ability to implement business plans, forecasts, and other expectations, and to identify and realize additional business opportunities, (iii) the risk of downturns in demand for products using synthetic biology, (iv) the uncertainty regarding the demand for passive monitoring programs and biosecurity services, (v) changes to the biosecurity industry, including due to advancements in technology, emerging competition and evolution in industry demands, standards and regulations, (vi) our ability to realize the expected benefits of merger and acquisition transactions, (vii) the outcome of any legal proceedings against Ginkgo, including as a result of recent acquisitions, (viii) our ability to realize the expected benefits from and the success of our Foundry platform programs, (ix) our ability to successfully develop engineered cells, bioprocesses, data packages or other deliverables, and (x) the product development or commercialization success of our customers. The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the "Risk Factors" section of Ginkgo's quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on November 8, 2023 and other documents filed by Ginkgo from time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Ginkgo assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Ginkgo does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations.

AGRIVALLE CONTACT:
Grupo Inca
Daniela Zigante – daniela@grupoinca.com.br
Paula Cardoso – paula@grupoinca.com.br

GINKGO BIOWORKS INVESTOR CONTACT:
investors@ginkgobioworks.com

GINKGO BIOWORKS MEDIA CONTACT:
press@ginkgobioworks.com

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SOURCE Ginkgo Bioworks