Agri innovator Corteva and biotechnology powerhouse Hexagon Bio have formed a multi-million-dollar joint venture aimed at accelerating the discovery of next-generation crop protection products derived from nature, the companies have announced.
The deal marks a first for both sides: Hexagon Bio’s debut partnership in agriculture and Corteva’s first joint venture rooted in pharmaceutical-style natural product discovery. Together, the companies plan to push new solutions through their respective pipelines spanning agriculture and human health.
The collaboration combines Corteva’s billion-dollar, nature-inspired crop protection franchises and its expertise in bacterial natural products with Hexagon Bio’s advanced discovery platform, which integrates microbial genetics, artificial intelligence, chemistry, and synthetic biology to uncover novel bioactive compounds.
“Our partnership with Hexagon Bio expands our discovery engine, taking our crop protection innovation to the next level,” said Sam Eathington, chief technology and digital officer for Corteva. “As demand for nature-inspired solutions continues to grow, this collaboration allows us to move faster and think bigger to provide farmers with the latest options in effective and sustainable tools.”
Hexagon Bio’s technology is designed to reveal new mechanisms of action that traditional chemistry and screening methods often miss, enabling faster and more efficient molecule discovery. The company says its platform generates more promising compounds than a single market can absorb—opening the door to parallel development in both agriculture and medicine.
“This partnership allows us to pursue two critical missions simultaneously: developing transformative therapies for patients and delivering new modes of action for global agriculture,” said Maureen Hillenmeyer, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Hexagon Bio.
“Our platform generates more high-value chemistry than a single development track can absorb, so we are excited to launch this JV for agriculture while continuing our focus on discovery of natural products for human health.”
Natural products have long been a cornerstone of innovation across health and agriculture, underpinning breakthroughs ranging from antibiotics like penicillin and taxane cancer therapies to fungicides and insecticides that protect staple crops worldwide.
With advances in data science and synthetic biology, companies are racing to modernize how those compounds are discovered and deployed.
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