Agricultural Biologicals and Biostimulants Patents: Leaders & White Space 2026
- Filing peaked in 2024 at 24 families, then trails off toward 2026 — reflect the usual 18-month publication lag rather than a real drop in activity.
- A01N (biocides) and C05F (organic fertilisers) dominate the IPC mix at 74 and 56 records respectively, while C05C, A01G and C05G each sit in single digits — narrow, largely open branches.
- Co-assignee activity is thin — only 9 pairs across 89 families, with one university-industry pairing filing five times together and everything else a single collaboration.
What this landscape covers
This dataset tracks 89 patent families published between 2015 and mid-2026 that combine agricultural biological, biostimulant or biopesticide language with claims touching shelf stability, field efficacy consistency, formulation carrier chemistry, microbial consortium composition or regulatory pathway, and that sit in the A01N63, C05F11 or A01P21 IPC subclasses. That combination of search terms narrows the field to filings that go beyond identifying a useful microbe or extract and instead claim how it is kept alive, formulated, or moved through registration.
The result is a working map of a field that is still consolidating around a handful of active filers, with organic/waste-derived fertiliser chemistry (C05F) running almost as deep as core biocide claims (A01N) — a sign that carrier and formulation work is drawing as much attention as the active ingredient itself.
Filing trends and technology composition
Two views of the same 89 families: how filing activity has moved year over year, and how the volume splits across the IPC subclasses that define the field.
Filing trend, 2017–2026
Filings were negligible before 2020, rose steadily, and peaked in 2024 at 24 families. The 2025 and 2026 figures are undercounts — publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so recent-year totals will keep revising upward as more applications publish.
Technology composition by IPC subclass
A01N (biocides/agrochemicals) leads at 74 records and C05F (organic and waste-derived fertilisers) follows closely at 56, with C12N (microorganisms and genetic engineering) and A01P (pesticide activity) forming a second tier. Nitrogen fertiliser chemistry (C05C), horticulture applications (A01G) and fertiliser mixtures (C05G) each register in single digits — thin coverage relative to the core clusters.
Shares are the percentage of the 89 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Agricultural Biologicals and Biostimulants with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about agricultural biologicals and biostimulants and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited records in this corpus
Whole cell methanotroph based biostimulant compositions, methods and applications thereof
Whole cell based biostimulant compositions and methods for improving agricultural productivity, built on a microbial consortium containing gammaproteobacterial methanotroph. The methanotrophs enable plant performance improvement, methane utilisation and improved nitrogen fixation in plants, reducing reliance on external chemical fertilisers.Filed by STRING BIO PRIVATE LIMITED, published 2023-07-13 as US20230217929A1.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WO2019155252A1 | Novel bacillus SP. simplex and uses thereof | 15 |
| 2 | WO2019155253A1 | Novel paenibacillus polymyxa and uses thereof | 14 |
| 3 | EP0494592A1 | A process and method for production and use of pathogenic fungal preparation for insect control | 14 |
| 4 | US20210276927A1 | Novel paenibacillus polymyxa and uses thereof | 9 |
| 5 | WO2021240470A1 | Hydrolysate based biostimulant compositions derived from methanotroph, methods, and applications thereof | 3 |
| 6 | AU2018408414A1 | Novel Paenibacillus polymyxa and uses thereof | 3 |
| 7 | US20240425804A1 | Systems for production of products to promote nitrogen use efficiency in plants | 2 |
| 8 | WO2022049239A1 | Ecological release of elements and degradation of organics using heterotrophic microorganisms out of multiple… | 2 |
| 9 | US20230217930A1 | Hydrolysate based biostimulant compositions derived from methanotroph, methods, and applications thereof | 2 |
| 10 | WO2024263759A2 | Methods and systems for promoting plant growth | 1 |
Citation counts reflect influence within this searched corpus and skew toward older filings; they are not a measure of current commercial importance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Read together, the filing trend, IPC split and citation pattern point to a field where formulation and carrier claims are catching up to the active-ingredient science.
Growth flattened before it matured
Filing rose from near zero in 2017 to a 2024 peak of 24 families, but the midpoint year (2022) shows only 2 — most of the growth is concentrated in the last few years before the cut-off, not spread evenly across the window.
Formulation chemistry rivals the active ingredient
A01N (biocide/agrochemical) claims outnumber C05F (organic fertiliser) claims by a narrow margin, meaning carrier and formulation work occupies nearly as much claim space as the biological activity itself.
No single office dominates
Europe leads receiving offices at 16, closely trailed by India (15), WIPO/PCT (15) and the US (13). The spread across six offices with no wide gap suggests applicants are pursuing parallel protection rather than concentrating on one home market.
Collaboration is rare and mostly one-off
Only 9 co-assignee pairs appear across the whole dataset. One university-industry pairing filed together five times; every other pairing appears once, indicating most work is filed solo rather than through joint development.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to agricultural biologicals and biostimulants, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is filing, and where the gaps sit
Recent-year momentum figures show flat or zero activity in the latest year for every tracked assignee, consistent with the publication lag rather than a slowdown in real filing.
Momentum figures understate current activity
Every assignee tracked for recent-year momentum, including STRING BIO and the university-industry pairing, shows 0 filings in the latest year. Given the roughly 18-month lag between filing and publication, this reflects incomplete data rather than a real halt.
One university-industry pairing stands out
A university and an industry co-assignee filed together five times, the strongest collaboration link in the dataset. Every other co-assignee pair appears only once, making this the closest thing to a repeat-partnership pattern in the field.
Bacillus and paenibacillus strains anchor prior art
The most-cited filings in the corpus centre on specific bacterial strains — bacillus simplex and paenibacillus polymyxa — filed as related family members. Their citation counts make them reference points for later formulation and consortium claims.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Tenfold Technologies LLC (d/b/a AgriZen Science) | 0 | -100% |
| STRING BIO | 0 | — |
| Valagro S.p.A. | 0 | — |
| University of Florida | 0 | — |
| W.R. Grace & Co. | 0 | — |
| Kemin Industries, Inc. | 0 | — |
| ECSO GLOBAL PVT LTD | 0 | -100% |
| AG BIOTECH INC | 0 | — |
Where to take this
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether you are scouting freedom to operate, evaluating a target, or drafting new claims.
Check formulation carrier claims before filing
With C05F running nearly as deep as A01N, any new biostimulant filing should map existing carrier and shelf-stability claims before drafting, not just active-ingredient prior art.
Explore formulation claims in EurekaWatch the thin branches
C05C, A01G and C05G each carry only single-digit filings. That is either genuine white space or a sign the sub-area has not yet been recognised as separately claimable — worth a closer technical read before assuming either.
Run a white-space search in EurekaRevisit momentum data after the lag clears
Every tracked assignee shows zero filings in the latest year, which is a publication-lag artefact. Re-pull momentum figures in 12-18 months for a truer read on who is actually accelerating.
Track assignee momentum in EurekaCommon questions on this landscape
This dataset identifies 89 patent families published between 2015 and mid-2026 that combine agricultural biological, biostimulant or biopesticide terminology with claims on shelf stability, field efficacy consistency, formulation carrier, microbial consortium or regulatory pathway, within the A01N63, C05F11 and A01P21 IPC subclasses. That is a narrow, claim-specific slice rather than a count of every biological crop-input patent filed worldwide. Broader searches without the formulation and regulatory-pathway qualifiers would return a larger number.
The apparent decline after the 2024 peak of 24 families is very likely a publication-lag artefact, not a real slowdown. Patent applications typically publish around 18 months after filing, so 2025 and 2026 figures are structurally incomplete at any given data cut-off. The recent-year momentum data showing zero activity for every tracked assignee reinforces that this is a reporting gap rather than a market signal.
A01N (biocides and agrochemicals) and C05F (organic and waste-derived fertilisers) are the two densest IPC subclasses, at 74 and 56 records respectively, meaning both the active biological component and its formulation carrier are well covered by existing claims. C12N (microorganisms and genetic engineering) and A01P (pesticide activity) form a second tier. Anyone drafting new claims in the A01N or C05F space should expect to navigate substantial prior art.
The thinnest IPC branches in this dataset are C05C (nitrogen fertilisers), A01G (horticulture and forestry applications) and C05G (fertiliser mixtures), each with single-digit record counts against a 89-family total. That suggests specific sub-areas — nitrogen-fertiliser co-formulation carriers, horticulture-specific delivery systems, and fertiliser-mixture shelf-life additives — carry comparatively little dedicated claim language. It is worth confirming through a targeted search whether that reflects genuine open space or simply low commercial interest before committing R&D there.
The dataset shows filing concentrated among a small set of active assignees, with STRING BIO Private Limited and a university-industry pairing among the more visible filers, alongside a long tail of single-filing entrants. Collaboration is rare — only 9 co-assignee pairs appear across all 89 families, with one pairing responsible for 5 joint filings and every other link a one-off. The most-cited individual filings concentrate on specific bacillus and paenibacillus strain compositions.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company’s registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.