Edison Agrosciences Announces $600,000 Seed Financing Round and Addition of Industry Veteran Tom Marsh To Board of Directors
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PR.comEdison Agrosciences Announces $600,000 Seed Financing Round and Addition of Industry Veteran Tom Marsh To Board of Directors
Uploaded by
PR.comEdison Agrosciences Announces $600,000 Seed Financing Round and Addition of
Industry Veteran Tom Marsh to Board of Directors
Edison Agrosciences, an industrial biomaterials company developing a sustainable domestic source
of natural rubber from sunflowers, today announced the closing of a $600,000 seed financing.
St. Louis, MO July 26, 2024 --(PR.com)-- Edison Agrosciences, an industrial biomaterials company
leveraging crop agriculture and technology, is excited to announce the closing of a $600,000 seed
financing round. This investment was made possible by the support of current and new investors,
including BioGenerator, Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC), Crisp & Company, LLC and others.
Edison Agrosciences is at the forefront of developing more sustainable, domestic sources of critical
industrial materials, with a current focus on producing natural rubber from sunflowers. Natural rubber is
an essential component in thousands of products used daily, known for its unmatched properties
compared to synthetic alternatives.
Despite its high demand, the United States lacks a domestic source of natural rubber. Presently, the global
supply is sourced from a disease-susceptible tree species grown primary in South and East Asia, with
continued demand growth leading to further tropical deforestation.
Edison Agrosciences has identified a promising solution by developing and commercializing natural
rubber from sunflowers, a crop already cultivated on approximately one million acres across the United
States. U.S. sunflower fields already have the potential to produce over 25,000 tons of natural rubber
annually; however, the current concentration of rubber in sunflowers is too low for economical extraction.
The company's pioneering efforts are focused on increasing the concentration of rubber in each plant,
thereby improving per-acre yield through advanced computational breeding and agronomic techniques.
The company’s seed financing will be used to advance research and development, including completing
its third year of field trials, increasing production capabilities for customer product evaluation, and to
further develop the supply chain infrastructure necessary to bring this innovative solution to market.
David Woodburn, CEO of Edison Agrosciences, expressed his gratitude to the investors: "We are thrilled
with the support from our investors, which will enable us to accelerate our development and
commercialization efforts. This funding will allow us to enhance our technology and IP position, further
increase rubber yield in sunflowers, and create a sustainable, domestic source of natural rubber. Our
company has significantly matured with non-dilutive funding from supportive and forward-thinking
organizations like DARPA, and we are excited about the opportunity ahead to supply much-needed
innovation and more sustainable bioindustrial materials."
In addition to this funding milestone, Edison Agrosciences proudly welcomes Tom Marsh to its Board of
Directors. Marsh is a 40+ year veteran of the latex and rubber industry, bringing a wealth of experience
and expertise to the company. His extensive career spans various laboratory, R&D, and manufacturing
positions within the medical device and sundry goods segments, including roles at Centrotrade Rubber
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USA, Abbott Laboratories and Ansell Healthcare.
Marsh's deep involvement in the rubber supply chain also includes senior executive roles at The Ore &
Chemical Corporation and Corrie MacColl Limited, a subsidiary of Halcyon Agri, where he was
responsible for sales, distribution, processing, production, and technical services for key industrial
materials such as natural rubber. Most recently, he served as Chief Operating Officer at Pioneer
Worldwide and Chief Technology Officer for Advanced Sustainable Polymers. Additionally, Marsh
formerly served as Chairman of the Board of ASTM International, and as Chair of its Technical Advisory
Group to ISO TC45 International Committee on Rubber, further demonstrating his leadership and
commitment to the industry.
Marsh holds degrees in General Science and Business Management from The Ohio State University and
Liberty University, respectively, and has completed additional work in polymer technology and process
development.
Tom Marsh commented: "I am very excited about the promise of the approaches that Edison is taking,
and to working with the team to further its industry presence.
"The company’s innovations are poised to be valuable across numerous industrial applications. But
importantly, they are also well positioned to be a leader in domestic, cost-competitive, and more
sustainable liquid natural rubber solutions, a rare combination."
For more information about Edison Agrosciences, please visit edisonagrosciences.com or contact us at
[email protected].
About Edison Agrosciences
Edison Agrosciences is a technology-driven company dedicated to developing sustainable industrial
biomaterials through innovative agricultural practices. The company's primary focus is on producing
natural rubber from sunflowers, aiming to create a reliable, domestic source of this crucial material and
address global supply chain challenges. The company has collaborated with and received support from
organizations such as DARPA (Defense Advance Research Agency), the Donald Danforth Plant Science
Center, the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2), and Arch Grants.
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Contact Information:
Edison Agrosciences
David Woodburn
314-325-6801
Contact via Email
https://www.edisonagrosciences.com
Online Version of Press Release:
https://www.pr.com/press-release/916579
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