Accelerates Global Reach of BioLumic xTraits™ Platform for Seed Companies
CHAMPAIGN, Illinois – December 8, 2025 – BioLumic, the only agricultural biotechnology company that programs heritable seed traits using light, today announced steps to expand its Corn xTraits™ Licensing Program into South America. This includes early-stage evaluations with GDM and a collaboration with Tropical Melhoramento & Genética (TMG), two of Brazil’s leading seed companies, along with regional seed production and nursery engagement with Gro Alliance. The move builds on strong partnership and commercial momentum of xTraits in the United States, and follows BioLumic’s plan to create xTraits hubs in grain-producing regions worldwide.
“To meet the global demand and reach of innovative seed partners and their customers, South American deployment is essential,” said Steve Sibulkin, CEO of BioLumic. “Our seed partners see an opportunity to drive higher performance in a fraction of the time and cost of alternative approaches.”
GDM’s current engagement is focused on testing BioLumic’s technology within its own genetics as part of early-stage evaluations. BioLumic will leverage TMG’s regional breeding expertise to accelerate field evaluation and adapt its xTraits Platform for South America’s top-producing corn regions. Grupo Scheffer, one of Brazil’s largest agricultural producers and a preferred customer of TMG, will also run multi-location field evaluations across its testing network including Mato Grosso and surrounding grain geographies. This alignment between seed companies and one of their major customers creates a direct pathway to validate BioLumic corn xTraits and to ensure regional farmers get access to these types of innovations through trusted partners.
“We are enthusiastic about exploring BioLumic’s technology within our genetics as part of early-stage testing,” said Tomas Tresca, Global NGT Traits Business Partner at GDM. “This is an important step toward understanding how light-activated traits could enhance performance and complement our breeding strategies in the future.”
In addition, off-season nursery activities in Chile enable year-round seed production cycling, trait matching, and hybrid trait development for both northern and southern hemisphere partners. BioLumic expects these collaborations to drive a broader Latin America rollout over the next 12 to 15 months with expansion aligned to partner commercial strategies.
BioLumic is currently evaluating the inbred germplasm provided by its Brazilian partners, with field evaluations and hybrid nursery production scheduled for 2026. These light-activated hybrids will be tested across both the first “Safra” and second “Safrinha” growing seasons to evaluate performance across Brazil’s major growing cycles and key grain-producing regions, including partner-aligned test locations. Data generated through 2026 and into 2027 will support commercial launch timing aligned to partner strategies for bringing new corn xTraits to market. The company expects future expansion into soybean and ryegrass across Latin America in the near future.
“TMG is evaluating BioLumic’s light-activation technology with interest,” said Anderson Meda, Head of Research and Development – Biotechnology and Genetics at TMG. “The approach has the potential to complement our efforts to enhance stability and performance in corn hybrid development, particularly in environments where rapid product advancement adds value for growers.”
About BioLumic:
Founded in 2013, BioLumic is a U.S.- and New Zealand-based agricultural biotechnology company using light signaling as a programming language for plants. Its patented xTraits™ technology unlocks non-GMO genetic expression traits to enhance yield, composition, and crop resilience through a one-time, light-based seed application. BioLumic traits are scalable, fast to develop, and easily integrated into existing seed systems. Learn more at www.biolumic.com or contact info@biolumic.com.
Link to Multi-media content
Audio interview with Steve Sibulkin, BioLumic CEO – 14:12
Media Contact:
Sara Winters
AgTech PR for BioLumic
sara@agtechpr.com