Sumitomo strengthens the Latin American agricultural portfolio with BIN investments

Sumitomo Corporation (President and CEO, Shingo Ueno) has agreed to invest in Bio Insumos Nativa (hereinafter “BIN”), a Chilean biocontrol manufacturing company, through Summit Agro South America, an agrochemical distribution company in South America. This investment will be considered official once the various legally required procedures have been completed.

Sumitomo Corporation invests in Bio Insumos Nativa (BIN) through Summit Agro South America. This move aims to tap into the growing biocontrol market, driven by environmental concerns and increasing demand for sustainable agriculture. With the expertise from previous investments, Sumitomo wants to expand BIN’s product portfolio and market reach.

With the world’s growing population making it essential to increase crop yields, the use of agricultural chemicals and fertilizers is increasing year after year. The associated increase in environmental impact has become a major concern for the agricultural sector, and in response the demand for biological control is increasing. The biocontrol market reached US$8 billion (approximately 1.2 trillion yen) in 2023, representing a 16-fold increase in 18 years from US$500 million (approximately 75 billion yen) in 2005, and will grow to expected to grow to USD 15 billion (over 2 trillion yen) by 2029, accounting for approximately 20% of the total agrochemical market of USD 75 billion (approximately 11 trillion yen). The Latin American biocontrol market is expected to grow at an average annual growth rate of 15% through 2029 due to the registration system that encourages the use of biocontrol and its increased use among soybean growers and other large-scale dryfield farmers.

Objectives of this investment and future development

BIN is a biocontrol manufacturing company founded in Chile in 2002. In the microbial biocontrol sector, its primary focus, BIN is the largest player in the Chilean market, accounting for a 30% share. The company is currently the main supplier of Summit Agro South America’s biocontrol products and has proven its market competitiveness through existing transactions and its development in Latin American countries, especially Chile and Peru. In addition to the products currently on the market, several new biocontrols are in development that are expected to increase the company’s sales in the future. Following this investment, BIN will participate in R&D/production from a more market-oriented perspective. Because biocontrol has less environmental impact and milder control effects than agrochemicals, the company will also encourage wider use of biocontrol across the value chain by providing farmers with business management/technical guidance to help them use biocontrol more effectively.

Sumitomo Corporation Group initiatives in agrochemicals

The Sumitomo Corporation Group has been engaged in agrochemical activities for more than 40 years and is currently involved in the sale and distribution of agrochemicals, specialty fertilizers and other agricultural materials in approximately 40 countries around the world, contributing together with manufacturers to global agricultural production. . In 2017, the Group invested in Futureco Bioscience SA, a biocontrol manufacturer in Spain, gaining access to that company’s expertise in biocontrol R&D, manufacturing/formulation processing and sales networks. With this latest investment, the Group plans to acquire an even broader product portfolio in biocontrol research and development, formulation manufacturing and processing, and further expand the products it processes and the size of its sales customer network to achieve the growth necessary to meet the needs of the entire biocontrol market value chain, from upstream to downstream. The Group will leverage the power of its global network to address sustainable agricultural production, with a view to responding to megatrends such as environmental regulations and biodiversity efforts.

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Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)