REG - Eden Research plc - AGM Statement

Eden ResearchAnnouncement

27/06/2024 09:45

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RNS Number : 1537U  Eden Research plc  27 June 2024

27 June 2024

 

 

Eden Research plc

("Eden" or "the Company")

 

AGM Statement

 

Eden Research plc (AIM: EDEN), the AIM-quoted company focused on sustainable
biopesticides and plastic-free formulation technologies for use in the global
crop protection, animal health and consumer products industries, will hold its
Annual General Meeting today at 11:00 am BST at 1 Bartholomew Close, London
EC1A 7BL.

 

At the meeting, Eden's Chairman, Lykele van der Broek, will make the following
statement:

 

Since the last AGM, Eden has made tremendous strides in delivering against its
strategic growth objectives and value creation model. Much of the groundwork
that our team has put in place over the past few years is now bearing fruit as
we enter new markets, continue to expand the labels of our existing products,
and introduce new products to the market to help diversify our revenue
streams.

 

The 2023 financial results reflect the progress we have made, showing revenue
growth of 78% compared to the previous year, our third consecutive year of
growth, exceeding market expectations. Much of this growth has been derived
from the launch of our innovative bird repellent seed treatment product,
Ecovelex™. This received a temporary authorisation in Italy for use on maize
triggering a significant order from our commercial partner Corteva. Ecovelex
is the result of a four-year intensive development programme by the Eden and
Corteva teams - bringing a regulated product such as this to market in a
relatively short period of time is quite an achievement for both companies and
testament to the levels of cooperation.

 

There is still much more to be excited about with Ecovelex as we await full
regulatory authorisation in the various countries in which we have applied,
including the EU and the UK. In addition, we are further developing Ecovelex
to pursue new markets and uses in order to grow the overall addressable market
for this innovative product.

 

Our growth strategy for our other two flagship products, Mevalone® and
Cedroz™, continues to reap rewards, particularly in the wake of various US
state approvals. We were pleased to have received regulatory approval at the
start of this year for Mevalone in California - the largest grape-growing,
wine-producing state in the US by a considerable margin. Supported by Sipcam
Agro USA, our distribution partner for Mevalone in the US, we expect to add
meaningful product sales revenue in the coming years.

 

We are also progressing well with the development of our insecticide product,
and are pleased with the encouraging results from field trial results received
to date. The size of Eden's addressable insecticide market cannot be
understated, particularly considering the increasing scrutiny that
conventional products face from regulators for their potential impact on the
environment. This morning, we announced detailed information about these
developments which will soon be available on our website.

 

Towards the end of last year, we successfully completed a fundraise at a very
challenging time for the capital markets, which has provided us with the
financial resources needed to accelerate existing workstreams, increase our
development capacity, and, importantly, grow our commercial team. We are
grateful to our new investors who participated in this fundraising process,
and to our existing shareholders who continued to show unwavering support of
the Company through both the institutional and retail offerings.

 

The business as it stands today is very different from just a few years ago.
As we continue to deliver against our strategic objectives, it is important
that we have the capacity and resources available to us to help maintain our
positive growth trajectory, steer the Company towards profitability, and help
realise the Company's full value.

 

Earlier this month, we welcomed the first new addition to our commercial team
in some time, and in the coming months, we will announce a further
strengthening of the team. Working together with our executives, these new
colleagues will be responsible for leading Eden's commercial expansion efforts
and driving revenue growth through both the expansion of our existing business
and the pursuit of new opportunities.

 

I want to take this opportunity to welcome to the Board Derek McAllan who
joined as Non-Executive Director last month. Derek brings with him
considerable experience in advising growth companies such as Eden in his
current capacity as a Partner of the audit firm RSM. Derek will assume the
role of Chairman of the Audit Committee following the conclusion of today's
meeting, with Robin stepping down from the role. Robin will remain on the
Board as a non-executive director and will continue to play a critical role in
this capacity providing continuity and historical perspective, as well as
transaction support, where appropriate.

 

To conclude, I'd like to thank all our investors once again for your support
over the past year. Finally, I'd also like to extend my personal gratitude to
the Eden team who has worked tirelessly to get us to the stage we are at
today.

 

 

For further information contact:

 

 Eden Research plc
 Sean Smith                                                        www.edenresearch.com (http://www.edenresearch.com/)

Alex Abrey

                                                                 01285 359 555

 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited (Nominated advisor and broker)
 Giles Balleny / George Lawson (corporate finance)                 020 7220 0500

Charlie Combe (corporate broking)

Michael Johnson (sales)

 Hawthorn Advisors (Financial PR)
 Victoria Ainsworth                                                eden@hawthornadvisors.com (mailto:eden@hawthornadvisors.com)

 

Notes to Editors:

 

Eden Research is the only UK-listed company focused on biopesticides for
sustainable agriculture. It develops and supplies innovative biopesticide
products and natural microencapsulation technologies to the global crop
protection, animal health and consumer products industries.

 

Eden's products are formulated with terpene active ingredients, based on
natural plant defence metabolites. To date, they have been primarily used on
high-value fruits and vegetables, improving crop yields and marketability,
with equal or better performance when compared with conventional pesticides.
Eden has three products currently on the market:

 

Based on plant-derived active ingredients, Mevalone® is a foliar
biofungicide which initially targets a key disease affecting grapes and other
high-value fruit and vegetable crops.  It is a useful tool in crop defence
programmes and is aligned with the requirements of integrated pest management
programmes. It is approved for sale in a number of key countries whilst Eden
and its partners pursue regulatory clearance in new territories thereby
growing Eden's addressable market globally.

 

Cedroz™( )is a bionematicide that targets free living nematodes which are
parasitic worms that affect a wide range of high-value fruit and vegetable
crops globally.  Cedroz is registered for sale on two continents and Eden's
commercial collaborator, Eastman Chemical, is pursuing registration and
commercialisation of this important new product in numerous countries
globally.

 

Eden's seed treatment product, Ecovelex™ was developed to safely tackle
crop destruction caused by birds - a major cause of losses in maize and other
crops. Ecovelex works by creating an unpleasant taste or odour that repels
birds, leaving the seeds safely intact and the birds unaffected and free to
find alternative food sources. The product is based on Eden's plant-derived
chemistry, registered in the EU, U.S. and elsewhere, and formulated using
Eden's Sustaine microencapsulation system.

 

Eden's Sustaine®( )encapsulation technology is used to harness the biocidal
efficacy of naturally occurring chemicals produced by plants (terpenes) and
can also be used with both natural and synthetic compounds to enhance their
performance and ease-of-use. Sustaine microcapsules are naturally-derived,
plastic-free, biodegradable micro-spheres derived from yeast. It is one of the
only viable, proven and immediately registerable solutions to the
microplastics problem in formulations requiring encapsulation.

 

Eden was admitted to trading on AIM on 11 May 2012 and trades under the
symbol EDEN. It was awarded the London Stock Exchange Green Economy
Mark in January 2021, which recognises London-listed companies that derive
over 50% of their total annual revenue from products and services that
contribute to the global green economy. Eden derives 100% of its total annual
revenues from sustainable products and services.

 

For more information about Eden, please visit:  www.edenresearch.com
(http://www.edenresearch.com/) .

 

 

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