Developing robust biological formulations is a well-known industry challenge.

CJB Applied Technologies is conducting research and using modern techniques to overcome biological product and formulation development obstacles.

Let’s look at the challenges of biological formulation development and what we’re doing in our new bioconversions lab to help our customers succeed in developing and commercializing these products.

What Are the Challenges in Developing Biological Formulations?

We see similar challenges across many agricultural technologies, but we encounter some unique struggles regarding biological formulations.

We have much work to do in order to understand microorganisms in terms of their behavior in different environments. These active ingredients need optimal conditions to produce target compounds that will perform and be efficacious. We must consider how these microorganisms maintain their chemical and biological structure in the formulation throughout production, processing, storage, and application.

We need to anticipate how a farmer might mix biologicals with other products which may be synthetic and consider the possible negative and positive interactions. For example, in some cases, biologicals may require added expenses for the farmer due to specific storage requirements, affecting demand.

In addition to the biological and chemical challenges presented by the microorganisms themselves, the formulations scientist must consider the regulatory requirements of the agricultural industry. Regulations dictate the technologies that a formulations chemist can and can’t use in the development process.

These limitations may hamper innovation but are a necessary check and balance to protect society and the environment.

What Can Be Done in a Bioconversions Lab to Overcome These Obstacles?

Basic research and testing are required to overcome the challenges of biological formulation development. By creating unique benchtop and lab experiments, we can get the closest representation of the various conditions that a biological product may encounter.

At CJB Applied Technologies, we have a team of scientists with decades of experience with synthetic pesticide formulations. We’ve combined their expertise with a biological team to make these new products in our bioconversions lab. The ultimate goal is to create biological formulations that meet our customers’ needs.

How Is CJB Applied Technologies’ Bioconversions Lab Tackling These Challenges?

Biologicals are extremely sensitive to their surroundings.

Our access to processing capabilities—such as freeze-drying and spray-drying—allows us to develop lab experiments to explore ways to minimize damage to the microorganisms and their chemical structures. To tackle the issues of producing natural functional agents for conversion, we have the expertise to produce enzymes sustainably from microorganisms.

Since there’s no single established efficacy testing standard for all biological products, we rely on our knowledge and skills to conduct experiments that tell us how the formulation will perform in an agricultural setting. We conduct realistic experiments with different plants and soil types using biological product development techniques and our on-site greenhouse to assess how products interact in various matrices.

As we go through the process of designing and developing biological formulations, we test the products with other biological/synthetic products on the market to verify stability and efficacy. We understand the need for biological ingredients to mix with other products a grower might be using.