Moa Technology, an agricultural biotechnology company focused on discovering novel mode of action herbicides, has raised a £22.2m Series C round co-led by Oxford Science Enterprises and Supernova Invest.
Spun out of Oxford University in 2017, Moa aims to help farmers sustainably protect their harvests from crop-killing weeds and ensure food security for all.
The company’s proprietary platforms have screened over 900,000 compounds and discovered more than 80 promising novel mode of action areas capable of breaking weed resistance to existing herbicides, with several advanced programmes now in their third year of international field trials.
The Series C funding will enable Moa to bring its three most advanced programmes significantly closer to commercialisation, build its pipeline of early-stage novel mode of action herbicides and to further develop the Moa Amplifiers programme.
Joining Supernova as new investors in Moa are Agri Investment Fund, GrainInnovate, Infinity Investment Partners and Magdalen College Oxford. The round has also been supported by existing investors OSE, Lansdowne Partners, Parkwalk and Oxford University Innovation.
“This marks a major milestone for Moa Technology – a validation of the outstanding progress we have made not just in the laboratory, but also in striking commercial deals with leading industry partners around the world,” says Virginia Corless, CEO of Moa Technology.
“We are particularly pleased that, through AIF in Europe and GrainInnovate in Australia, the farming sector itself is closely connected to the next phase of Moa’s development, helping accelerate delivery of our solutions to the fields where they are so urgently needed.”
