Biologicals: From seaweed to A.I., this budding market is booming 🚀 🌱

“In the field, we’re fighting extreme conditions,” says Francesco Deledda, who advises a 300-hectare Italian vineyard on crop care in increasingly arid soil.  

“The old ways of using inputs are no longer as successful,” he says, so the agronomist has added biological crop-supporting products into the mix over the last couple of years. “Our results have been critical in growing more robust plants.” 

For generations, growers have spread products on their fields made from living or naturally occurring materials like seaweed, fungi, and nitrogen-fixing bacteria. What’s different now is that science amplifies their benefits exponentially, boosting growers’ trust.  

Biologicals also capture the zeitgeist. Regulators are responding to the public’s concerns over the use of chemical pesticides. Meanwhile, traditional input costs are rising and the efficacy of solutions on the market is falling as pest and disease resistance builds. 

“Biologicals will be an important solution to enrich farmers’ toolbox,” Emilhano Stefanello Lima, our Global Head of Seedcare and Biologicals, told us in an interview. He sees Syngenta Biologicals’ sales tripling between 2024 and 2029. 

Francesco is not alone in upping his use of biologicals: the market is booming. By 2030, the global biologicals market will reach nearly US$20 billion, expanding 4.5 times faster than traditional crop protection, per consultancy AgbioInvestor and Syngenta’s forecasts.    

Now’s where we get to the cool bit: Artificial intelligence is accelerating the discovery of new and even better biologicals.  

“A.I. streamlines biological discovery and development,” said Syngenta’s Head of Biologicals Research Jerome Cassayre. His teams are using A.I. to reduce trial-and-error in R&D by optimizing ingredient combinations and predicting performance. 

Let’s dig into these trends 👇  

Back to basics for a moment, biologicals can be broken down into three major categories: biostimulants, biocontrols and nutrient use efficiency. Here’s a handy graphic to get a feel for what each one does:   

Take, for example, one of our biocontrols that uses pheromones to disrupt proceedings when pests mate – the Ag equivalent to a buzzkill. 

We get it, biologicals haven’t scaled in the past mainly because they didn’t move the needle for farmers. Adoption correlates with farmers’ perceived return on investment, according to a survey of U.S. farmers by consultants at McKinsey.  

That’s changing.  

“The sustained growth in awareness and adoption of agricultural biologicals among U.S. row-crop farmers is a testament to the sector’s innovative momentum and the undeniable value these sustainable inputs bring to modern farming practices,” said Cam Camfield, consultancy Stratovation’s CEO, in a report. 

Slowly slowly, biologicals are shaking off their “snake oil” moniker as science-backed results dispel doubt. A survey by CropLife in 2025 shows less mistrust of biologicals among U.S. farmers than in 2023. 

We are seeing this growing adoption replicated around the world.  

“In Brazil, for example, farmers are facing a huge challenge related to resistance and pest shifts,” said Emilhano, who grew up on his family farm in Brazil. As of last year, a McKinsey survey showed around 65% of Brazilian farmers were using biocontrols.

In the European Union the main challenge is the lack of products on the market. Over the past six years, EU farmers alone have lost about 85 crop protection solutions, with no new conventional pesticides approved in the same period, according to CropLife Europe.  

“We’re asking farmers to fight today’s challenges with yesterday’s tools,” said the association’s Priscila Quaini Jacobitz. 

The other big growth driver we highlighted earlier, regulation, ☝️ also should not be underestimated. The EU Green Deal, the India Zero Budget Natural Farming policy and U.S. organic farming incentives are collectively having a deep and lasting impact. 

In Europe, there have been notable developments this year and experts are anticipating a flurry of activity in the final months of the year.   

📍 In February, the European Commission’s high-level initiative, Vision for Agriculture and Food, called for faster access to biopesticides  

📍 In September, the EU formally established the first-ever EU-wide framework for assessing and monitoring soils 

To be sure, regulation is complex. Policymakers must balance the public’s concerns about chemical pesticides with food security. Ag experts agree, biologicals cannot fully replace the gamut of traditional products on the market. 

“The problem is products, we don’t seem to have enough of them, whether they are chemical or biological, there are not enough to provide the farmers with the solutions they need,” said Jennifer Lewis of the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit. “The speed to market is very, very slow in Europe compared with the rest of the world,” sometimes a decade versus 2-3 years in other places, she added.  

A.I. is getting great publicity these days: many hope it will transform businesses, while others fear the benefits may prove illusory.   

Where we see tangible results is in the lab. A.I. streamlines biological discovery and development by analyzing complex data across multiple active ingredients (microbes, natural extracts, and biomolecules) and formulations. It enables rapid extraction of crucial information from scientific literature to predict biological functions and identify promising candidates. 

Our scientists are building platforms for A.I. to search for correlations between the chemical composition of biological active ingredients and the biological response of plants.  

“This will enable the identification of promising biological traits and guide the development of future applications in crop growth, stress resilience, and nutrient use efficiency,” said Jerome.   

This is huge as traditional discovery relies heavily on empirical screening, which can be slow and resource intensive while A.I. makes it faster, more efficient, and cost-effective by adding a predictive dimension.  

Overall, innovation is speeding up. The last big new biostimulant technology was 25 years ago – quarter of a century! We’re launching a new technology soon, so stay tuned! “It’s going to disrupt the market,” said Emilhano.  

Our pipeline includes breakthrough biocontrol solutions that match the performance of conventional chemicals. Additionally, we're developing a next-generation nutrient use efficiency product that goes beyond nitrogen optimization to include phosphorus and micronutrients. 

We cast the net wider to hear what our partners in the ecosystem say and they are also embracing A.I.  

“AI lets us screen billions of molecules in our DNA-encoded libraries to help us uncover those new modes of action and cut our discovery timelines by up to 75%,” Anthony Klemm, CEO of ag-tech company Enko said during a recent panel discussion.   

Sailors have braved the brutal Arctic Ocean to harvest seaweed for generations. What they’ve known for centuries, science is now confirming: algae extract—specifically Ascophyllum nodosum—helps crops: 

✅ Thrive under stress ✅ Resist extreme weather ✅ Unlock their full potential 

Oddmund Hestvik, a lifelong “farmer of the sea,” has been harvesting kelp used in the biologicals industry off the coast of Norway for over 50 years. “It’s a fine life, a free life,” he says.  

Learn more about seaweed in biologicals here.

In German, check out ZDF’s take here.

The growth in biologicals has attracted a flurry of dealmaking in the industry. Ag companies are jockeying to position themselves in the promising sector, corporates are building out their biologicals infrastructure, and financial investors are getting in on the action, including Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek and the Gates Foundation.   

Based on our analysis in combination with AgbioInvestor, we see biostimulants and nutrient use efficiency products growing fastest, racking up double-digit compound annual growth rates. Barclays investment analysts recently called biostimulants “a huge opportunity” in recent research.  

At Syngenta, building on our acquisition of Italian-headquartered Valagro in 2020, we’ve taken steps to strengthen our capabilities by acquiring:   

📌 Intrinsyx Bio – a California-based start-up developing nutrient-use efficiency products that help farmers get more from every field. 

📌 Novartis’ repository of natural compounds and genetic strains for agricultural use 

As Emilhano put it: “With our recent partnerships and acquisitions and extended manufacturing capacities, Syngenta is positioning itself as the leader in agricultural biologicals.”   

Our pipeline is now one of the strongest in the industry, with several potential blockbuster biologicals products on track to deliver projected annual sales each of US$100 million or more. 

Backed by expanded manufacturing, strategic partnerships, and targeted acquisitions, we’re setting our sights firmly on leadership in this fast-growing space. 🚀 

Our ambition to lead in biologicals isn’t just about products in the pipeline — it’s about building the infrastructure to deliver them where farmers need them most. That’s why earlier this year we celebrated the opening of our new state-of-the-art biologicals production facility in Orangeburg, South Carolina.   

Joined by South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, our CEO Jeff Rowe, and local partners, we cut the ribbon on a site designed to produce 16,000 tons of plant biostimulants annually. Beyond the impressive scale, the Orangeburg facility represents a strategic step: strengthening our presence in the Southeast and directly empowering farmer choice across the U.S.  

“The new biologicals facility not only underscores a commitment to our footprint and economic development in South Carolina but also supports farmers across this great nation. We remain committed to delivering new and innovative tools to benefit them, and the strong ag industry we serve and depend upon,” Jeff Rowe , CEO, Syngenta Group    

Innovation is woven into every corner of the Orangeburg site. From zero-wastewater systems that recover process water onsite, to storm-resilient structures built to withstand 180+ mph winds, the facility reflects the latest in sustainable, future-ready design. With automation, advanced process controls, and safety standards built in, capacity is expected to nearly double between 2025 and 2028.   

“The opening of this Orangeburg facility is a win for both South Carolina and Syngenta. It reflects the strength of our workforce and the value of our partnerships. We are proud to support a company that is not only innovating in agriculture but investing in our people and our future,” Henry McMaster, South Carolina Governor   

This investment marks more than a new production site. It’s a commitment — to American farmers, to local communities, and to a future where biologicals play a central role in sustainable agriculture.   

🔗 Find out more here. 

Here’s one to watch: at the upcoming Biostimulant World Congress in Barcelona, Dec. 1-4, Syngenta Biologicals will highlight farmers who are driving change from the ground up. The Farmer’s Award recognizes early adopters of biostimulants and champions of sustainable practices — showing how innovation in the field can deliver for both productivity and the planet.  

Nominations close Nov. 14, click here for more details 

Run Don’t Walk 🏃🏽 

We’ve done the groundwork for you and curated three stories that capture where food and farming are headed:

1. Why regenerative agriculture is gaining ground

Healthier soil, biodiversity, and resilient crops — regenerative farming is showing real wins for both ecology and yield. Source: Financial Times

2. The rise of Biologicals

Bloomberg spotlighted how consumer demand, political momentum, and farmer needs are accelerating a global shift toward biologicals. The article highlights what we’re seeing too: farmers everywhere want more biological solutions, and companies with strong pipelines and proven science are leading the charge. Source: Bloomberg

3. Autonomous machines tackle orchard labor shortages

Bonsai Robotics has raised $15 million to develop autonomous robots for tree-crop harvesting (almonds, walnuts, etc.), aimed at reducing labor shortages and improving efficiency. Use of robotic vision tech, especially in orchards, is growing fast.  Source: Wall Street Journal

Syngenta does not endorse these articles and has not independently verified the contents. The editors of this newsletter have included these headlines for the interest of the community only.

What topics would you like us to cover next? Let us know in the comments below! 👇

This month, Syngenta is celebrating its 25th anniversary. We are proud of our innovation pipeline and contribution to the food system over the past quarter of the century. Check out more of our stories about innovation in agriculture here.