The promised technical tasks have been successfully completed at WUR as described in our proposal; one task is still ongoing as of this writing and will continue beyond the end of the project, as was anticipated in the proposal.
From the start of the project, a major global player in the lutein and marigold markets was involved in an advisory role and as a potential customer of HRB. They shared valuable insider knowledge of the lutein and marigold markets and, importantly, indicated a strong interest in HRB’s high-lutein marigold. For the latter, the prestige associated with an EU grant was a critical factor. HRB and WUR have access to this company's top lutein-producing plant, to directly test the proof-of-concept in this agriculturally relevant cultivar. A positive result would help ensure a fast route to market (and profit) for HRB.
With the help of our advisory board and external consultants, through this Phase 1 project we have created an R&D strategy for the next few years, including additional developments with regard to high-lutein marigold (which can be complementary or serve as a “plan B” to the current R&D efforts), as well as other lines of research that involve “plants as factories”.
We identified two important challenges for HRB in our proposal, and found solutions for both during our feasibility study. First, the political sensitivity and legal issues surrounding GMO crops may no longer be an issue in the EU in the nearby future, as countries are starting to allow the use of the CRISPR-Cas9 technology as a non-GMO approach to modify crops (e.g. Sweden). In other major markets of interest to HRB (including the USA), GMO aspects form no barrier to our business case. Second, we identified a viable strategy to ensure sufficient protection of our IP.
In all, through this EU-funded project, we confirmed that our high-lutein marigold business case is highly viable, and worth to develop further from a technical as well as a business perspective.
