PhycoTerra^® ST wins “AgTech Innovation of the Year” in 2022 AgTech Breakthrough Awards Program

PhycoTerra^® ST wins “AgTech Innovation of the Year” in 2022 AgTech Breakthrough Awards Program

Annual awards program recognizes innovation in agricultural and food technologies around the globe

PHOENIX – August 25, 2022 – Heliae^® Agriculture, a pioneering algal tech company creating scalable regenerative agriculture solutions for growers worldwide, announced today PhycoTerra^® ST has been selected as the winner of the “AgTech Innovation of the Year” award in the 2022 AgTech Breakthrough Awards conducted by AgTech Breakthrough, a leading market intelligence organization recognizing the top companies, technologies, and products in the global agricultural and food technology markets today.

Launched in 2021, PhycoTerra^® ST, a seed treatment derived from microalgae, is specifically designed to support crops in their early and most critical stage of development. PhycoTerra^® ST uniquely provides a high-quality carbon coating to the seed, thereby delivering a superior, balanced food source for the soil microbes living on and around the seed in the spermosphere. PhycoTerra^® ST activates microbes as soon as the seed is sown which improves soil quality and structure, thus supporting crops with excellent stand establishment and vigor.

Being pasteurized, PhycoTerra^® ST uniquely provides growers with a shelf-stable product that has minimal special storage or equipment requirements. It also has a low-application rate and mixes well with a variety of other seed treatments without compromising viability. Additionally, its unique mode-of-action makes it effective across a wide range of soil types and crops– further advancing soil health innovations for growers worldwide.

“We are thrilled to be recognized with this award from AgTech Breakthrough,” said Tony Donoho, vice president of global sales for Heliae^® Agriculture. “We’re proud PhycoTerra^® ST continues to garner recognition across the industry by offering high mixability, low application rates, consistent yield results, and ROI– delivering profit back to growers. PhycoTerra^® ST also delivers value beyond consistent ROI and increased yields. We believe our innovation helps growers focus on sustainably improving soil health and quality on their farms for future crops and generations.”

The mission of the annual AgTech Breakthrough Awards program is to conduct the industry’s most comprehensive analysis and evaluation of agricultural and food technology categories, including Internet-of-Things (IoT)- and Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based agricultural technologies, farm management, indoor farming, food quality, data analytics, and many more. This year’s program attracted more than 1,600 nominations from over 15 different countries throughout the world.

“Beneficial soil microbes do important work for the seed, but microbes without a proper food source go dormant, rendering them inactive,” said Bryan Vaughn, managing director, AgTech Breakthrough. “A thriving, diverse seed microbiome plays a critical role in germination, stand establishment, and a crop’s eventual yield, vigor, and ability to withstand abiotic stresses, such as drought, flooding, and temperature extremes. PhycoTerra^® ST is a true breakthrough innovation, trailblazing a path for nature-sourced seed treatments that wake up these sleeping beneficial native microorganisms and put them back to work. Congratulations on being our choice for ‘AgTech Innovation of the Year.’”

PhycoTerra^® ST is part of a revolutionary brand that has been applied to over one million acres of farmland globally, making a positive impact for growers, consumers, and the planet. Within its first year of commercialization, over 70,000 acres worth of PhycoTerra® ST were sold in the U.S.