Puna Bio develops agricultural biofertilisers using extremophile microorganisms sourced from the Argentine Puna, one of Earth’s highest and driest deserts. These 3.5-billion-year-old bacteria thrive in extreme conditions and are engineered into seed treatments that enhance crop resilience and yield.
The new investment (the amount has not been publicly disclosed) will enable Puna Bio to focus on deeper innovation and the development of new products. Additionally, the company will look to expand its business in US, Brazil, and Paraguay, where it has already made progress in regulatory approvals and commercialisation.
With operations across the US, Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina, Puna Bio two current commercial products – Kunza (for soybeans, cotton, and beans) and Kanzama (for wheat and barley) – have already been deployed on over 800,000 acres in just three commercial seasons.
The power of ancient bacteria
Unlike traditional pesticides and fertilisers, Puna Bio says its products are based on natural solutions that enhance nutrient uptake, tolerance to stress and crop quality. Its biological (non-GMO) seed treatments are based on the unique capabilities of extremophiles isolated from the Argentine Puna.
“Our solution, based on ancient bacteria dating back 3.5 billion years, maximises productivity by 10 to 15% in fertile soils and revitalises degraded soils that would normally be too acidic or salinized to be productive,” said Franco Martínez Levis, Puna Bio’s CEO and co-founder.
“With so much of the world’s agricultural land on the path to degradation and weather patterns becoming more extreme worldwide, our discovery platform ensures that we can continue feeding the global population in a sustainable way.”
Puna Bio received its initial funding in 2022, led by At One Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture firm. The capital enabled the establishment of the company’s first laboratory and growth of its core team.
The new round of funding was led by Corteva Agriscience through its Corteva Catalyst platform – its investment in Latin America. The round included participation from existing investors At One Ventures, SP Ventures, SOSV, Builders VC, and new investor Dalus Capital.
Tom Greene, senior director at Corteva and global leader for Corteva Catalyst explained the unique about the appeal of Puna Bio.
“Puna Bio’s distinct approach in exploring new biodiversity from extreme environments has the potential to find novel traits and plant interactions where changing weather conditions and new pests and diseases continue to be a challenge for farmers,” he told AgTechNavigator.
“In addition, the company has developed a unique know-how on extremophiles that helps them to not only to find them and characterise their properties, but also to develop stable products and scale them quickly.”
LATAM: A key player in the global biologicals market
Explaining the reasons why Corteva Catalyst has chosen to make its first foray into Latin America with Puna Bio, Green said: “LATAM is a critical market for our business overall and is a key player in the global biologicals market, where Corteva is already very active as an important part of our overall growth strategy.”
“Having a player with a regional footprint and know-how complements our own innovation pipeline and can help facilitate faster adoption of technology. We believe Puna Bio’s products and technology have the potential to succeed at a global scale.
“In addition, the LATAM region is very biodiverse, so it makes sense to leverage such a valuable resource to develop novel biologicals that deliver differentiating results.
