LAV321demonstrated strong results in its third consecutive
year of field trials in Europe
REHOVOT, Israel, Nov. 19,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lavie Bio Ltd., a leading
ag-biologicals company and subsidiary of Evogene Ltd. (Nasdaq:
EVGN) (TASE: EVGN), today announced significant progress in the
development of its LAV321 bio-fungicide, targeting downy mildew.
Over three years of field trials across Europe, evaluating the efficacy of LAV321 in
protecting crops from fungal diseases, LAV321 demonstrated an
impressive average efficacy rate of 70% against downy mildew in
grapes. These results lead to the decision to advance it to the
last stage of product development toward commercialization.
Downy mildew is a damaging foliar disease of grapes, leading to
yield losses of up to 75% in key growing areas[1]. The
global fungicide market, valued at over $24.5 billion in 2024, is projected to grow to
$33.27 billion by 2028, with a
compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.9%[2]. As public
interest in environmentally friendly farming practices rises and
concerns about fungal resistance to chemical solutions
increase, ag-biologicals like LAV321 are emerging as preferred
solutions to address these challenges and promote sustainable
agriculture.
In addition to the field trials targeting downy mildew, during
2024 Lavie Bio also conducted trials evaluating LAV321 for the
control of late blight in tomato. The trials demonstrated an
average efficacy rate exceeding 60%, equivalent to commonly used
copper products, which LAV321 is intended to substitute. Late
blight is a key disease in management of tomato and potato crops,
creating an estimated $6.7 billion in
global damages annually[3].
LAV321 was discovered and optimized through Lavie Bio's Biology Driven Design (BDD)
platform, powered by Evogene's MicroBoost AI tech-engine. It
is designed to integrate seamlessly into farmers' existing
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices, enhancing productivity
and sustainability while helping to prevent the development of
resistance to conventional fungicides.
Amit Noam, Lavie Bio's CEO, expressed his
satisfaction with the announced advancement: "We are very pleased
with LAV321's performance over the last three years of our field
trials, as well as in numerous trials conducted by several of our
multinational partners. Our target of reaching 70% efficacy against
downy mildew this year was successfully achieved, providing
validation to our effective solution for key fruit and vegetable
diseases, while fitting easily into current IPM practices. I am
proud to announce that LAV321 has completed its development and is
now entering the pre-commercial stage, with regulatory processes
set to begin."
About Lavie Bio Ltd.
Lavie Bio, a subsidiary of
Evogene Ltd., aims to improve food quality, sustainability, and
agriculture productivity through the introduction of
microbiome-based ag-biological products. Lavie Bio utilizes a proprietary computational
predictive platform, the BDD platform, powered by Evogene's
proprietary MicroBoost AI tech-engine, harnessing the power of big
data, artificial intelligence, and advanced informatics, for the
discovery, optimization and development of bio-stimulant and
bio-pesticide products.
For more information, please visit www.lavie-bio.com.
About Evogene Ltd.
Evogene (Nasdaq: EVGN, TASE: EVGN) is a computational biology
company aiming to revolutionize the development of life-science
based products by utilizing cutting edge technologies to increase
the probability of success while reducing development time and
cost. Evogene established three unique tech-engines - MicroBoost
AI, ChemPass AI and GeneRator AI – leveraging Big Data and
Artificial Intelligence and incorporating deep multidisciplinary
understanding in life sciences. Each tech-engine is focused on the
discovery and development of products based on one of the following
core components: microbes (MicroBoost AI), small molecules
(ChemPass AI), and genetic elements (GeneRator AI).
Evogene uses its tech-engines to develop products through
subsidiaries and strategic partnerships. Evogene's subsidiaries
currently utilize the tech-engines to develop human
microbiome-based therapeutics by Biomica, ag-biologicals by
Lavie Bio, ag-chemicals by AgPlenus,
medical cannabis products by Canonic and castor varieties, for the
biofuel and other industries, by Casterra.
For more information, please
visit: www.evogene.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking statements"
relating to future events. These statements may be identified by
words such as "may", "could", "expects", "hopes" "intends",
"anticipates", "plans", "believes", "scheduled", "estimates",
"demonstrates" or words of similar meaning. For example, Evogene
and its subsidiaries are using forward-looking statements in this
press release when they discuss public interest in environmentally
friendly solutions and the adoption of ag-biologicals like LAV321
as preferred solutions, the integration of farmers of LAV321 and
successful achievement of regulatory approvals. Such statements are
based on current expectations, estimates, projections and
assumptions, describe opinions about future events, involve certain
risks and uncertainties which are difficult to predict and are not
guarantees of future performance. Therefore, actual future results,
performance or achievements of Evogene and its subsidiaries may
differ materially from what is expressed or implied by such
forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, many of
which are beyond the control of Evogene and its subsidiaries,
including, without limitation, the current war between Israel and Hamas and any worsening of the
situation in Israel such as
further mobilizations or escalation in the northern border of
Israel and those risk factors
contained in Evogene's reports filed with the applicable securities
authority. In addition, Evogene and its subsidiaries rely, and
expect to continue to rely, on third parties to conduct certain
activities, such as their field-trials and pre-clinical studies,
and if these third parties do not successfully carry out their
contractual duties, comply with regulatory requirements or meet
expected deadlines, Evogene and its subsidiaries may experience
significant delays in the conduct of their activities. Evogene and
its subsidiaries disclaim any obligation or commitment to update
these forward-looking statements to reflect future events or
developments or changes in expectations, estimates, projections and
assumptions.
Contact:
ir@evogene.com
Tel: +972-8-9311901
[1] Plasmopara viticola the Causal Agent of Downy
Mildew of Grapevine: From Its Taxonomy to Disease Management,
Kseniia Koledenkova et al. Frontiers in Microbiology, May 2022
[2] EINPresswire: Fungicides Market Growth Analysis With
Investment Opportunities For 2024-2033
[3]
https://www.ars.usda.gov/news-events/news/research-news/2021/wild-potatoes-tapped-for-late-blight-guard-duty/
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SOURCE Lavie Bio