Metrovate seeks partners to validate next generation biostimulants
Metrovate is developing precision biostimulants designed to work with the “secret language” of plants. Now, the New Zealand agritech company is seeking growers, nurseries and commercial partners to help validate the technology and accelerate its path to market.
Growing up on Great Barrier Island (Aotea), a remote island off New Zealand’s north-east coast, shaped plant scientist Dr Nikolai Macnee’s perspective on food production and the natural world.
“There’s no mains power or water, so you’re very aware of the balance of the world, and what it takes to look after yourself,” Nikolai says.
This self-sufficiency fostered a deep appreciation for natural systems, resourcefulness and the delicate balance between people, food production and the environment.
Today, Nikolai is applying those same principles through Metrovate, the Auckland-based agritech company he founded to develop precision biostimulants that work with a plant’s own signalling pathways.
The company’s next stage is validating the technology under commercial growing conditions, building on early results and demonstrating its value in real-world production environments.
The company is currently focused on nurseries, glasshouse production and hydroponic systems, where products can be more easily deployed and evaluated.
“It’s more immediate to apply to nurseries and glasshouses and hydroponic systems,” Nikolai says.
While protected cropping systems represent the initial focus, the longer-term opportunity extends into broadacre and row crop agriculture.
“Partnering to get into row crops is definitely the larger aim because these large row crops are a significantly larger market than all of the nurseries generally combined,” he says.
The company is now seeking growers, nurseries, commercial partners and strategic collaborators through growAG. to help validate the technology in commercial environments and accelerate its pathway to market.
The opportunity comes as Metrovate expands beyond laboratory testing and into real-world growing systems, with early industry traction already emerging through signed Letters of Intent with kiwifruit producer, Zespri and dairy collective, Dairy Holdings.
Explore Metrovate’s growAG. opportunity: Next-Gen Precision Biostimulants for Covered Crops - seeking partners.
Moving beyond “snake oil”
Biostimulants are not new to agriculture. Nikolai explains many products are made up of broad biological extracts, making it difficult to understand exactly how they are delivering results.
“Existing biostimulants have been plagued by this term of being snake oil or being ineffective,” he says.
Rather than relying on broad extracts derived from seaweed, algae or microbes, Metrovate is developing precision biostimulants based on small bioactive peptides, naturally occurring molecules that can trigger specific responses inside plants.
The company’s platform combines computational discovery, biological screening and plant science to develop targeted products that help improve crop performance and reduce yield loss.
“A precision biostimulant contains a small amount of bioactive peptide able to stimulate growth or other types of responses in the plants related to immune system signalling,” says Nikolai.
The products are designed to deliver benefits at very low application rates, with the potential to improve root development, nutrient uptake and resilience to pests and diseases. Nikolai says the technology can also help prime a plant's natural defences before disease pressure occurs.
“It could also be an induction of pathogen resilience of the plant because it has felt these stimuli related to pests and disease without actually having the pests and disease,” he says.
Designing biological signals
During Nikolai’s honours and PhD research, he studied plant growth and development, including the signalling pathways that govern how plants respond to their environment.
Today, those same pathways underpin Metrovate’s technology. Nikolai describes them as the “secret language” of plants.
At the heart of Metrovate’s platform is a combination of plant biology, computational modelling and artificial intelligence.
“We use AI to predict the structure of proteins, and we make approximately 100,000 protein structures each month that we can filter through and decide what’s worthy of a deeper simulation,” he says.
The company then combines computational screening with laboratory testing to identify peptide candidates that are effective, stable and commercially viable.
Nikolai says Metrovate focuses on products with a “known mechanism of action,” meaning the team understands which plant signalling pathway is being activated and the response it is designed to trigger.
“It's great to know we’re stimulating a natural process because it’s the food that we eat,” Nikolai explains.
The goal is to create highly targeted products that can work alongside existing farming systems while reducing reliance on broader chemical inputs.
From the lab to commercial trials
To date, Metrovate has generated encouraging laboratory results in tomatoes and is expanding work into cucumbers and ryegrass.
The company’s next stage is validating the technology under commercial growing conditions, building on early results and demonstrating its value in real-world production environments.
The company is currently focused on nurseries, glasshouse production and hydroponic systems, where products can be more easily deployed and evaluated.
“It’s more immediate to apply to nurseries and glasshouses and hydroponic systems,” Nikolai says.
While protected cropping systems represent the initial focus, the longer-term opportunity extends into broadacre and row crop agriculture.
“Partnering to get into row crops is definitely the larger aim because these large row crops are a significantly larger market than all of the nurseries generally combined,” he says.
Why partner now?
Through growAG., Metrovate is seeking commercial growers, nurseries, industry collaborators and strategic partners interested in helping validate the technology and shape its future development.
For Nikolai, the ideal partner is one looking for practical ways to improve productivity while reducing dependence on conventional inputs.
He says interest is strong among growers and businesses seeking the next generation of agricultural products that can deliver both commercial and sustainability outcomes.
“People are just waiting for a new product to be available,” he says. “Growers are super excited when I say, ‘we can have a very new product that’s sustainable and it can come out quickly’.”
Nikolai says one of the advantages of precision biostimulants is their ability to deliver new functionality without the lengthy timelines associated with developing new crop varieties.
Looking ahead, Nikolai’s focus is firmly on demonstrating the technology’s value in commercial growing environments and expanding validation across a broader range of crops.
It’s the next step in a longer-term vision to unlock the “secret language” of plants and develop more precise, sustainable tools for agriculture.
Learn more about Metrovate’s growAG. opportunity: Next-Gen Precision Biostimulants for Covered Crops - seeking partners.