Biostimulant for soy containing ‘extremophilous’ bacteria launched in Argentina

The company, Puna Bio, recently entered the Argentine bioinput market with the launch of an innovative product, ″Kunza,″ which is used for the treatment of soybean seeds.

According to the manufacturer, Kunza is the world's first ″extremophilic″ biostimulant, formulated with bacteria that live in ″extreme conditions.″

The microorganisms contained in Kunza are extracted from the highest salt pans in the Puna region, northwest Argentina.

According to Puna Bio, this biostimulant can make plants tolerant to drought, stress and salinity, adding its benefits to soybean bioinputs are not only limited to soils with dry or salty conditions, but it also help soybeans develop better in fertile soils, increasing yields by between 10% and 15%.

Dr. Elisa Bertini, co-founder of Puna Bio, said, ″Extremophiles are widely used in other applications, including in medicine. COVID-19 PCR test uses an enzyme from an extremophile. Our major innovation is to use drought, stress and salinity tolerant bacteria, which we isolated from the Puna for agricultural applications to improve cultivation in both difficult conditions and fertile soils.″

Elisa Bertini, Co-founder of Puna Bio

The product has been approved by the Argentine National Service for Health and Agro-Food Quality (SENASA), and it will be marketed through two channels: the distribution network of partner companies and the company’s sales network itself, with producers already using it in their fields.

Puna Bio executives stressed that Kunza Soja was evaluated during field tests over two seasons by renowned researchers, such as Gustavo Ferraris, Luis Ventimiglia, Edgardo Arévalo and Federico Morla.

Smaller-scale trials were also carried out, with 40 companies being interested in testing to eventually produce and potentially license the product.

After being selected by Indie Bio, the world's largest biotechnology startup accelerator, Puna Bio has attracted foreign investments worth more than US$3.7 million.

With that money, it plans to expand its research efforts by building a new laboratory in Tucumán, as well as carrying out more field tests in Argentina, Brazil and the United States (US).

In addition, it is advancing the regulatory approvals of all its products in experimentation.

Franco Martínez Levis, Founder and CEO of the Company, said that field tests are being carried out in seven Argentine provinces, while in the US, studies are being conducted in seven states, and in Brazil, investigations will begin at the end of the year.

Franco Martínez Levis, Founder and CEO of Puna Bio

In addition to Kunza Soja, Puna Bio is testing biostimulant products for corn, wheat, beans, sugar cane and other crops.

″We are focusing heavily on corn and wheat, not only to improve yields but also to reduce the use of chemical fertilizers, which are responsible for a third of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions,″ Bertini said.

He then explained that some microorganisms they are working with are very effective for nitrogen fixation.

″During field tests, we have so-far reached up to 20% of the fertilizer reduction potential while maintaining productivity, implying not only lower costs for producers but also lower carbon emissions,’ Levis said.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)