Business
Eden partners with M H Poskitt
Eden partners with M H Poskitt.
About this update from Eden Research Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \n \n \n RNS Number : 8494D\n Eden Research plc\n 02 November 2020\n \n \n \n \n 2 November 2020\n \n \n \n \n \n Eden Research Plc\n \n \n (\"Eden\" or \"Company\")\n \n \n Eden partners with M H Poskitt to develop bio-fungicide targeting late blight\n \n \n Eden Research plc (AIM: EDEN), the AIM-quoted company focused on sustainable biopesticides and plastic-free formulation technology for use in global crop protection, animal health and consumer products industries, announces that it has partnered with M H Poskitt (\"Poskitt\") to develop and trial a new bio-fungicide product designed to protect and improve the quality of vegetables. M H Poskitt is a family owned farming business based in East Riding, Yorkshire, specialising in the growing and packing of root vegetables for leading supermarkets and is a leading producer of carrots in the UK. Poskitt's farm currently produces approximately 80,000 tonnes of crops per year serving UK retailers and a range of other customers.\n \n \n \n \n \n The partnership has been established to support an R&D project that M H Poskitt has been engaged in investigating the effect of mugwort plant extract on key plant diseases. The plant extract has been trialled on potatoes, carrots, and parsnips, and initial results suggest that it could help to combat fungal diseases. One example is potato late blight (Phytophthora infestans), which is a significant disease in both organic and conventionally grown potatoes and if left untreated, can destroy entire crops. \n \n \n \n \n \n Over the coming two years, Eden, which has expertise in plant-derived sustainable chemistry and developing and registering biopesticide products, will be conducting wider testing with the aim of developing a commercially viable product. The collaboration is currently in the early stages of development and does not have a significant impact on management's expectations for the performance of the business for the time being. This unique project could eventually provide farmers with a naturally-derived product to help protect against late blight, which costs farmers an estimated £55m each year in the UK alone. \n \n \n \n \n \n Options for chemical control of late blight are very limited. Recently, the EU Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed voted not to rene...