AgMA Energy Ltd, a 50:50 joint venture between MicroAlgae Solutions India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlgaEnergy, and Agrolife Sciences Corporation (ALSC), is looking to roll out specific products to suit Indian crop and climatic conditions.

Headquartered in Spain, AlgaEnergy is a biotechnology-based company that specialises in the science of microalgae. Microalgae have biostimulant and biofertiliser properties thatcan be used in crop production to increase agricultural sustainability.

According to Douglas Ry Wagner, President of International Agribusiness of AlgaEnergy, India is the first market where the company has forayed outside of Europe.

“When we decided to embark on international expansion, we were looking to tie up with a strategic partner and we found that in Agrolife Sciences Corporation.

“Our technology is based on biological process, which is very sustainable and renewable. Using this technology farmers will see return on their investment,” Wagner told BusinessLine .

While modern day agriculture is heavily dependent on the use of inorganic and chemical-based fertilisers that pose a serious threat to human health and environment, biostimulants, which are derived from microbes such as algae, is considered to be a more eco-friendly approach for sustainable agriculture.

The use of biostimulants will bring a marked difference in the crop quality, apart from improving output or yield, he said.

Products

The company is looking to roll out products specific to Indian agricultural conditions in the next one to two months.

“We are working on different delivery mechanism through this joint venture. We have products in the form of granules for soil and also in other forms for the crop in general. We are in the process of finalising the products and hope to roll them out by June-July this year,” said Debabrata Sarkar, Vice-President, Asia Pacific, AlgaEnergy.

The basis of all these products would come from microalgae, which are single-celled plants that contains all nutrients, minerals, and elements that the crop needs to develop.

The biostimulants so developed can be used for growing paddy, wheat, cotton, corn, sugarcane, vegetables and fruits, among others.

The company has been running the pilot across various geographies of India.

Growing market

According to Wagner, while the concept of using biostimulants in agriculture is still new to India, however, it has been growing at a “rapid pace”.

“Globally, the biostimulants market is growing at about 30 per cent. In India, it is growing faster than global average, and we see that as an opportunity to bring these products to India as our first stop,” he said.

The growth will continue to accelerate as farmers get better understanding of the use of biostimulants. The joint venture will depend on the strong farmer base and the extensive domestic and global distribution network of ALSC for distribution of its products.

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