Botanical Solution Inc. (BSI) has appointed Marcus Meadows-Smith to its Board of Directors. Meadows-Smith will advise and support the management team’s current efforts to bring novel biopesticides and a gold standard vaccine adjuvant to global markets.
Meadows-Smith is currently CEO of BioConsortia Inc. Prior to that, he turned around the biopesticide business AgraQuest Inc. over a four-year timeframe, signing partnership agreements between a bio-ag company and several big agchemical giants, culminating in Marcus’ company being acquired by Bayer CropScience for over $400 million. Following Bayer’s acquisition of AgraQuest, he became head of biologics for Bayer CropScience. Meadows-Smith also had a 14-year career at Chemtura Corporation, assuming multiple managerial roles and ultimately becoming EVP for a $2 billion portfolio of businesses that included crop protection, consumer products and plastics additives.
BSI’s first product “ABM-01” is based on a plant which is native to Chile, named Quillaja saponaria molina. This product is the active ingredient used in the production of their biopesticide Botristop, and the adjuvant QS-21, the gold standard adjuvant for modern vaccine development.
BSI successfully launched Botristop with Syngenta in Chile in 2019. This partnership has greatly benefited local high-value crop growers who now have access to advanced and effective IPM strategies. Botristop’s unique modes of action allow worldwide exports of top quality fresh produce, while meeting the world¬¥s strictest MRL guidelines. Botristop will soon be registered in a number of key Latin American countries. Additional regulatory actions are also expected in the U.S. and E.U. during 2020 and 2021, respectively.
According to Mr. Meadows-Smith, “BSI has a breakthrough technology for the cost-effective and reliable production of key high quality botanicals, filling a need gap in the market. BSI’s products have been proven through extensive field trials on multiple crops in key countries. This includes the successful launch by Syngenta in Chile, the first country to gain an ag registration.” Meadows-Smith adds.
Meadows-Smith concluded, “I’m very pleased to serve on the Board of this innovative company, which I believe will be making an increasingly important contribution to improving plant and human health.”
BSI CEO, Gaston Salinas, says, “I feel honored to have Marcus on board. I believe his valuable experience will spillover across the Company and will allow us to make the right decisions at the right time, and materialize a long-term vision for our business. We are currently addressing key strategic and distribution decisions in different markets worldwide for Agriculture and Pharma. Marcus’ unique vision and expertise arrives at the perfect time for BSI.”
