Bee Vectoring Technologies Announces 90% Disease Reduction in Michigan State University Trial: CR-7 is an Effective Spray Application

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Posted on April 17, 2024

Bee Vectoring Technologies Announces 90% Disease Reduction in Michigan State University Trial: CR-7 is an Effective Spray Application

Mississauga, ON Canada and Sacramento, CA USA (April 17, 2024) – Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc. (the “Company” or “BVT”) (CSE: BEE) (OTCQB: BEVVF) (CVE:BEE) is pleased to announce strong spray trial results for the Company’s proprietary Clonostachys rosea CR-7 (CR-7) biofungicide.

Data from the Michigan State University trial shows that when used on a blueberry crop, BVT’s CR-7 reduced early disease infection (shoot strikes) and Monilinia (mummy berry) fungal disease by over 90% compared to the untreated plot, and was equally effective as the grower standard (the conventional use of chemical treatments) when used as a spray application.

“Last year we announced our commercial collaboration and first sales order in the foliar application market,” said Ashish Malik, CEO of BVT. “These strong results support our work with partner BioSafe Systems and are in line with our plan to expand our addressable market. We are broadening the use of our proprietary biofungicide to a seed treatment, a spray application,  a soil drench application and more – all in addition to the initial bee vectoring application.”

Dr. Tim Miles, extension specialist and leading expert on blueberry diseases at Michigan State University, led the 2023 trial on Berkeley blueberries, a variety highly susceptible to mummy berry. A technical grade CR-7 spray was applied to bushes from green tip to petal fall and compared to another plot sprayed with the grower standard.

“We can confidently conclude from the Michigan State University trial that BVT’s CR-7 controls fungal disease extremely well as a spray application,” said Dr. Mason Newark, Field Technical Manager at BVT. “This trial demonstrates that CR-7 could be integrated into a pre-bloom or post-bloom spray program to extend disease control throughout the season.”

Mummy berry, caused by the fungus Monilinia vaccinii-corymbosi, is a major blueberry pathogen that causes yield and quality loss. Primary infections, called shoot strikes, can result in bush dieback and can be a source for secondary infections later in the season. Fruit “mummification” is not evident in early stages of development, but as the fruit develops, infected berries turn pink or light brown and eventually shrivel up. These shriveled berries then provide inoculum for subsequent seasons, resulting in a perennial pest pressure if not managed proactively.

There are plans to repeat the trial in coming years. “Additional trials will provide useful insights as BVT develops expanded uses of CR-7 beyond bee vectoring and into more conventional use patterns to expand control into a full season biological program,” continued Dr. Newark.


About Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc.
BVT, an agriculture technology company, is a market disruptor with a significant global market opportunity in the $240 billion crop protection and fertilizer market. BVT has pioneered a natural precision agriculture system that replaces chemical pesticides and wasteful plant protection product spray applications by delivering biological pesticide alternatives to crops using commercially grown bees. BVT’s award-winning technology, precision vectoring, is completely harmless to bees and allows minute amounts of naturally-derived pesticides (called biologicals) to be delivered directly to blooms, providing improved crop protection and yield results than traditional chemical pesticides – and improving the health of the soil, the microbiome and the environment. Currently, BVT has over 55 granted patents, many more patents pending in all major agricultural countries worldwide and has US EPA registration of its Vectorite™ with CR-7 (EPA Registration No. 90641-2) for sale as a registered biological fungicide for use on the labeled crops.

Additional information can be viewed at the Company’s website www.beevt.com. To receive regular news updates from the Company, subscribe at www.beevt.com/newsletter.

BVT Company Contact:
Ashish Malik, President & CEO, BVT
info@beevt.com

BVT Investor Contact:
Babak Pedram
Virtus Advisory Group
Tel: 416-646-6779
bpedram@virtusadvisory.com

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