The Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA) has approved BiomElix® One, an innovative component from FOLIUM Science, for use as an animal feed additive and included in their Positive List of Feed Ingredients. According to the company, this product improves poultry productivity in the presence of all Salmonella bacteria.
FOLIUM Science, a UK based biotechnology business, has announced that the innovative component for its new product, BiomElix® One, has been approved by Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA) for use as an animal feed additive and included in their Positive List of Feed Ingredients. This approval comes after extensive review of efficacy data in poultry and detailed evaluation by Brazilian authorities, the company explained.
BiomElix® One was reportedly developed using FOLIUM Science’s proprietary CRISPR-Cas based technology platform called Guided Biotics®. According to the company statement, this product uses natural biological systems to modulate the microbiomes of animals improving productivity by removing unwanted microbes and bacteria, while preserving the beneficial ones, resulting in a healthier animal gut. In addition, this first BiomElix® product improves productivity in poultry in the presence of all Salmonella bacteria.
“This is a significant milestone for us as a business as well as for the animal nutrition industry,” says FOLIUM Science CEO Ed Fuchs. “Not only it does demonstrate our unique expertise in the use of CRISPR technology to manage microbiomes and support an animal’s gut, but it also supports the industry’s goals to meet consumer demands for meat produced without excessive use of antibiotics. This may be the dawn of next generation probiotics, but the hard work is yet to come.”
BiomElix® One has previously received endorsement as non-GMO from the Brazilian National BioSafety Committee (CTNBio) under its ‘new breeding technique’ normative. This safety endorsement came as FOLIUM Science’s technology utilises naturally occurring microbiome pathways to improve the microbiome’s effectiveness and productivity with extreme precision and without unwanted disruption of the animal gut microbiome.
Brazil is one of the world’s largest producers of poultry, beef, and pork, making the approval of BiomElix® One main component an important step forward in sustainable agriculture. Rising concerns about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) means new technology has a big role to play. Now, BiomElix® One can be part of the toolkit for targeted management of productivity in the face of all Salmonella, and help address challenges such as improving feed efficiency, enhancing animal welfare, and reducing the environmental impact of livestock farming, according to the company.
With the approval in Brazil as a feed ingredient, FOLIUM Science stated that it will look to select strategic partners for large scale field trials in Brazilian territory to continue to demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency that this innovative new product can offer.
