[B]iotechnology companies are turning to living organisms and natural materials for inspiration.
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[U]nibaio extracts chitosan from shell waste and transforms the natural biopolymer into microparticles that carry the active ingredients in pesticides, fertilizers and plant health products. In short, it turns crab and shrimp shells into biodegradable crop boosters.
“In corn, our additive increased pesticide effectiveness by 25 percent, while cutting chemical use by 40 percent,” [Matias] Figliozzi says. “For soybean farmers facing fungal threats, it delivered the same level of protection with 80 percent less fungicide.”
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PhageLab is developing viruses that target harmful bacteria in farm animals. Known as bacteriophages – literally “bacteria eaters”… “Think of antibiotics as cutting power to an entire city and phages as flipping the switch on a single faulty circuit,” says [Mario] Carrasco. “We can eliminate Salmonella or E. coli without touching the beneficial bacteria that keep animals healthy.”
