Biotalys takes on $50.9m

Biotalys, a Belgium-based food and crop protection product developer spun out of VIB, has increased its series C round to €45m ($50.9m) following a $11.3m second close featuring Novalis LifeSciences and undisclosed existing investors.
VIB had backed the initial $38.6m series C close for Biotalys – then called AgroSavfe – in August 2019, investing with university venture fund Qbic, spinout-focused investment fund Sofi, agrochemical supplier Globachem, Flemish government-owned investment firm Participatiemaatschappij Vlaanderen (PMV), private equity firm Gimv and VC firm Sofinnova Partners.
Investment group Ackermans and van Haaren, Agri Investment Fund, Kirkland and Ellis, Biovest and Madeli Participaties filled out the initial tranche.
Founded in 2013, Biotalys develops protein-based chemicals that protect farm crops such as vegetables from pests and diseases, using formulations that replicate naturally-occurring biology to avoid harsh side-effects.
The series C cash will go towards developing Biotalys’s lead asset, BioFun-1, a biofungicide for fruit and vegetables, ahead of its US commercial release in 2022.
Proceeds will aid BioFun-1’s production and regulatory registration while also accelerating other Biotalys products targeting various food and crop pests and disease.
Marijin Dekkers, former chairman of Novalis LifeSciences, will join the Biotalys board of directors as an observer.
Biotalys closed its series B round at $11.7m in 2017 with funding from VC firm Sofinnova Partners, six months after the initial series B tranche backed by VIB, Qbic, agrochemical producer Globachem, Gimv, PMV, Madeli Participaties, and Biovest, the investment vehicle of Rudi Mariën.
The round followed a $6.7m series A round in 2013 that included $2.7m from Gimv’s Gimv-Agri+ Investment Fund, and additional capital from VIB, Qbic, PMV and Sofi.