Ascribe Bio (“Ascribe”), an emerging leader in natural crop protection, has announced the successful close of an oversubscribed $12 million Series A financing round aimed at advancing its innovative small-molecule platform and preparing for the commercial launch of its flagship product, Phytalix®. The round was co-led by Corteva, through its Corteva Catalyst platform, and Acre Venture Partners, underscoring a strong vote of confidence from two prominent players in the global agriculture innovation ecosystem.
The financing round also saw participation from several strategic investors, both new and returning, including Syngenta Group Ventures, Trailhead Capital, Silver Blue LLC, Cultivation Capital, and The Yield Lab. Together, this diverse syndicate brings deep expertise across agriscience, venture investment, and sustainability-driven innovation — critical for scaling Ascribe’s mission to redefine crop protection for modern agriculture.
A Step Toward the Future of Crop Protection
Ascribe’s latest funding milestone marks a major inflection point in the company’s journey to commercialize nature-based technologies that rival conventional crop protection products in both performance and affordability. The funds will be used to expand manufacturing capabilities, strengthen regulatory and commercial readiness, and advance the company’s pioneering research pipeline. Central to this effort is Phytalix®, a breakthrough “biofungicide without compromise” that combines the health and sustainability advantages of biological solutions with the consistency, scalability, and cost-effectiveness of traditional chemical products.
Designed to help farmers protect their crops from fungal diseases while maintaining soil health and biodiversity, Phytalix® represents a new generation of biofungicides — one capable of delivering measurable, field-proven results without the trade-offs typically associated with biologicals. Unlike many microbial or organic fungicides that can suffer from inconsistent efficacy under real-world conditions, Phytalix® uses Ascribe’s proprietary small-molecule technology platform to achieve robust, reliable disease control across diverse environments.
Strategic Investment by Global Agriculture Leaders
For co-lead investor Corteva, the partnership aligns closely with its long-term commitment to sustainable innovation in agriculture. “Ascribe’s approach to biological solutions provides farmers with smart and sustainable choices for disease control,” said Tom Greene, Senior Director at Corteva and global leader of Corteva Catalyst, the company’s innovation and investment platform. “This investment illustrates our ongoing commitment to advancing next-generation biological and nature-inspired products for growers around the world.”
Corteva’s involvement is particularly significant given the company’s global influence in agricultural technology and crop protection. Through Corteva Catalyst, the company actively supports early-stage innovators who are pioneering transformative solutions across crop health, nutrition, and sustainability. By partnering with Ascribe, Corteva continues to expand its investment in a new era of science-based natural technologies that complement — and in many cases, enhance — conventional protection strategies.
Acre Venture Partners, co-leading the round, also highlighted Ascribe’s disciplined and results-driven approach. “Ascribe’s lean team has been strategic and disciplined, advancing Phytalix from the lab to the field,” said Alex Bondar, Partner at Acre. “They’ve demonstrated dramatic yield gains versus other biologicals. You see the progress reflected in the caliber of this syndicate.”
Bondar’s remarks underscore a growing trend among agrifood investors to back science-based biological solutions that can compete head-to-head with synthetic chemistries — a space that Ascribe Bio appears poised to lead.
A Vision Rooted in Science and Sustainability
Founded with a mission to make natural crop protection both effective and accessible, Ascribe Bio is developing technologies that leverage the power of small-molecule chemistry inspired by nature. Unlike traditional biocontrol products that often rely on live organisms or enzymes, Ascribe’s approach focuses on identifying and optimizing naturally derived small molecules that can be precisely formulated, stored, and applied with the same ease as chemical fungicides — but with far less environmental impact.
“Ascribe is reimagining what’s possible in biological crop protection,” said Jay Farmer, CEO of Ascribe. “We’re excited to secure these resources to fund the global launch of Ascribe’s technologies and are delighted to earn the support of renowned global agriculture leaders like Corteva and Syngenta Group Ventures. This investment accelerates our mission to bring highly effective and sustainable crop protection to farmers worldwide.”
Farmer emphasized that Ascribe’s work goes beyond developing a single product — it represents the foundation of a scalable technology platform that can generate multiple new products across different crop protection categories. The company’s small-molecule platform is designed to identify compounds that mimic natural plant defense mechanisms, offering a powerful way to enhance resilience while reducing chemical dependency in farming systems.
Preparing for Global Commercialization
With this infusion of capital, Ascribe is entering a pivotal stage of growth. The company plans to ramp up manufacturing operations and expand field testing and regulatory programs in key agricultural markets. The first regulatory approval for Phytalix® is expected later this year in Brazil, one of the world’s largest and most rapidly expanding markets for sustainable agriculture products. Following Brazil, Ascribe aims to pursue approvals in the United States and additional global regions where demand for next-generation biologicals is accelerating.
The decision to launch in Brazil reflects both the country’s growing regulatory support for biological solutions and its vast agricultural landscape, which is ideal for demonstrating Phytalix’s real-world efficacy. Brazil’s farmers have been early adopters of biological products, but many continue to seek solutions that can match the reliability and shelf stability of traditional fungicides — a challenge that Ascribe’s technology directly addresses.
Driving the Transition to Sustainable Agriculture
As the global agricultural sector faces mounting pressure to reduce chemical use, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and maintain productivity under increasingly unpredictable climate conditions, biological crop protection is emerging as a crucial part of the solution. However, adoption has been limited by concerns over performance variability, cost, and ease of integration into existing farming practices.
Ascribe’s breakthrough lies in bridging this gap. By offering a “biofungicide without compromise,” Phytalix® aims to make biologicals not only a sustainable choice but also a pragmatic one. Its formulation provides farmers with familiar handling characteristics, consistent efficacy, and compatibility with standard agricultural practices — all while promoting environmental stewardship and long-term soil health.
