Sep 8, 2022

Summit Nutrients acquires nutrient efficiency innovator

Summit Nutrients, LLC., a precision-based manufacturer and marketer of bio-nutritional and fertilizer products, has acquired AGVNT LLC., a research and development company known for pioneering a technology platform of nutrient efficiency innovations.

This acquisition is part of Summit Nutrients’ growth strategy toward building the industry’s broadest platform of nutrient efficiency technologies. It also reaffirms the company’s commitment to expediting its expansive pipeline of sustainable, cutting-edge solutions currently in development.

“AGVNT is recognized throughout the industry for its high-performing, differentiated technology which will position us for future growth in serving a greater diversity of crops and geographies,” Jeremy Fountain, director of business development for Summit Nutrients, said in a news release. “By pairing AGVNT’s market-leading assets with our rapidly transforming portfolio, manufacturing, and commercial product skills, we immediately offer a compelling value proposition which we plan to scale across more acres domestically and internationally.”

In the last five years, Summit Nutrients and its parent company, Wedgworth’s Inc., have worked closely with AGVNT to develop more than 100 bio-nutritional granular and liquid custom-blended products, which have been commercially applied on more than five million U.S. crop and turf acres to date.

Fountain said the collaboration has allowed for rapid development and deployment of advanced nutrient products which have proven to be extremely beneficial for farmers, channel partners, consumers and the environment.

“Bringing AGVNT into the fold bolsters our ability to create value in multiple areas, including nutrient use efficiency, abiotic stress tolerance, biological and microbial soil health, and intrinsic yield improvement,” he said in the release. “To our knowledge, no company in the plant nutrition sector has this caliber of proprietary technology under one roof like we have today – allowing us to become a one-stop shop for next-generation solutions.”

AGVNT Assets

The underlying intellectual properties of AGVNT related to the acquired technologies, including patents, trademarks, registrations, data packages and physical assets associated with the formulation and manufacturing of technologies, have been transferred to Summit Nutrients.

Patrick Chapman, president and co-owner of AGVNT, said in the release that “both organizations are naturally complementary – making perfect sense in bringing the two together to create real synergy.

“We are thrilled to join Summit Nutrients because of its impressive agronomic and commercial capabilities,” Chapman said in the release. “The ability to expand AGVNT’s commercial reach and be part of a broad product portfolio was a great incentive. Together, both organizations can move forward on multiple levels, including R&D, joint development opportunities, manufacturing and commercial activities.”

As part of this transaction, AGVNT’s research workforce has transferred to Summit Nutrients, along with its manufacturing division, which supports Summit Nutrients’ multi-site operation in gaining closer proximity to Midwest geographies.

Go-to-market strategy

With AGVNT fully embedded, Summit Nutrients is immediately headed to market with a suite of proprietary technology offerings as well as custom-blending and private-label programs.

“Demand for bio-nutritional products continues to increase with the adoption of sustainable management practices,” Fountain said in the release. “Our customers are first in line for direct access to solutions that not only improve nutrient efficiency but also improve soil health, and with fewer inputs required per application.”

Summit Nutrients is launching six technology solutions that address farmers’ most critical plant nutrition challenges while establishing a new distribution platform in agriculture, turf and ornamental markets.

Key assets under Summit Nutrients’ technology platform include:

• Nanobubble technology – A first of its kind in agriculture, this patented process technology uses nanobubble gases to infuse oxygen into liquid fertilizer, dramatically increasing nutrient efficiency while reducing inputs required per acre.
• Advanced chelation technology – Designed to replace synthetic chelators, this all-natural chelation technology hosts the Lipophilic Nano Molecule, allowing nutrients to easily penetrate the waxy cuticle and be fully metabolized by the plant.
• Biostimulant technology – Powered by advanced plant health components, this technology triggers biological and chemical reactions for improved stress resistance, root growth and energy production.
• Active carbon complex technology – Unique carbon complex technology containing all three humic fractions; this technology is a natural soil conditioner that acts as a chelator and microbial stimulator for improving plant and microbe interactions.
• Nutrient delivery system technology – A nutrient delivery blend of nano-scale biostimulant components, working immediately for full delivery of micros and macros in any fertilizer mix by removing barriers that hinder plant uptake.
• Nutrient compatibility technology – By optimizing the interaction between individual nutrients and other chemistries when used together in a blend, this technology allows previously incompatible inputs to now co-exist in a single stable homogeneous solution.

With record-high fertilizer costs looming over the 2023 planting crop season, Fountain said there has never been a more urgent time for the introduction of new technology and products that help customers make the most of every dollar they spend on fertilizer.

“Completing this acquisition represents an important milestone for Summit Nutrients, our employees, and customers,” he said in the release. “We’re excited and look forward to shaping and propelling our business to the next level with AGVNT onboard.”