MEDFORD, Mass., September 10, 2012 — Agrivida, Inc., a developer of biotechnologies for agricultural and industrial processing, announced today that it has raised $15 million as part of a Series C financing to advance the development and commercialization of its proprietary technologies. Bright Capital Partners led the round. Other Series C investors include Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, DAG Ventures, Prairie Gold, Presidio, Gentry Venture Partners, Northgate Capital, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, and Syngenta Ventures. Additional terms were not disclosed.
“The financing will enable us to continue the development and commercialization of our proprietary INzyme™ platform, which will allow our partners to produce non-food biomass with properties customized to enhance specific chemical processes, including generation of cellulosic biofuels and other related products, within existing infrastructure,” said Mark Wong, CEO of Agrivida.
Earlier this year, Agrivida launched its first significant field production of INzymeTM materials in U.S. Department of Agriculture-regulated trials. Materials from these trials will be used in larger-scale agricultural and industrial processing trials, to refine both field performance and processing characteristics of Agrivida-modified feedstocks.
About Agrivida
Agrivida, Inc., headquartered in Medford, Mass., is the commercial leader in developing improved crops with enzyme expression for production of biofuels and bioproducts from non-food agricultural residues and dedicated biomass crops. The company has entered into research and development agreements with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), ARPA–E, the USDA, and other partner companies. With expertise in protein engineering, molecular biology, plant biotechnology, agronomy, and chemical engineering, Agrivida is leading the industry in the development of innovative, sustainable crops and processes to meet energy needs and protect the environment.