Collaboration aims to create a leading development platform for microbial products in cattle

(Fort Collins, Colo. — October 18, 2022) — Today Axiota Animal Health, a global animal health company based in Colorado, announced a development and licensing agreement with Resilient Biotics, a North Carolina-based company pioneering new microbiome-based animal products using advanced multi-omic approaches, data science, and in vitro screening technologies. The agreement grants Axiota exclusive global rights to Resilient Biotics' proprietary treatment of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) and further collaboration with Resilient Biotics for additional product development and commercialization of important indications in the global cattle market. As part of the collaboration, Axiota also made a direct investment in Resilient Biotics and anticipates a multi-year effort to develop a portfolio of new products.

Jon Lowe, CEO of Axiota, said this agreement reaffirms Axiota’s commitment to seek innovative solutions for their customers. “Combining Resilient Biotics’ advanced microbiome genomics and data science with Axiota’s proven ability to develop and commercialize novel microbes will allow us to better serve the cattle industry with first-in-class products that address our customers’ animal health, welfare, environmental, and economic goals. The innovation resulting from this collaboration will be a great fit with our existing LactiproNXT®, LactiproFLX®, and Multimin® 90 portfolio and enhance the value we bring to customers.” 

Resilient Biotics’ BRD technology gained notoriety in the industry when it was announced as the winner of the 2021 Beef Alliance Startup Challenge Award. Chris Belnap, Ph.D., Resilient Biotics’ co-founder and CEO, said, "We’ve built a discovery platform entirely focused on utilizing healthy microbial strains to combat harmful pathogens in production animals, particularly those that cause respiratory disease. Our BRD technology has the potential to displace the routine use of antibiotics in cattle and could fill a critical gap in preventative care to address this costly disease. Using scientific advances to understand the complexities of animal-microbiome interactions provides a new avenue for exciting and innovative products in animal health.”

“We believe this agreement will accelerate the development of our product for the treatment of BRD,” Belnap said. “We are both optimistic and eager to enter into this strategic collaboration with Axiota, as they extend their commitment to a novel, first-in-class product for cattle. Axiota’s MS Biotec® Microbial Technology Center has been a leader in developing novel microbes in animal health for over a decade, and they have significant commercial reach with deep expertise in cattle.”

William (Bill) Weldon, Ph.D., former CEO and current technology and innovation advisor to Axiota, said “The synergy between these two companies results in world-class microbial discovery, product development, and a commercialization team focused on using the latest technologies to develop cattle products that solve some of the most important issues to cattle producers. Resilient Biotics’ discovery capabilities combined with the stabilization, formulation, and manufacturing expertise at Axiota’s MS Biotec Microbial Technology Center, creates a unique and novel microbial product development and commercialization platform, equipped to develop new products based on the latest microbiome science.”

About BRD
BRD is a general term for respiratory disease in cattle and a major cause of economic losses. BRD affects the lower or upper respiratory tract and is usually caused by a variety of pathogens, both viral and bacterial. A range of factors can contribute to BRD, such as weaning, changes of feed, weather, and other environmental and stress factors in cattle production. Morbidity and mortality rates on feedlot cattle are in excess of 30% across the industry and BRD is estimated to be the largest global animal health market category in livestock with more than $3 billion in market opportunity.    

About Axiota Animal Health
Axiota Animal Health delivers best-in-class animal health products with proven modes of action that help manage risk and support cattle health, performance, and well-being across all stages of beef and dairy production. With scientifically proven products, such as Multimin® 90, LactiproNXT® and LactiproFLX®, Axiota supports the health and performance of cattle during transition and stress across all stages of beef and dairy production. Axiota is a portfolio company of Paine Schwartz Partners, a global leader in sustainable food chain investing.  To learn more about Axiota, visit www.axiota.com.

About Resilient Biotics
Resilient Biotics is developing breakthrough live biotherapeutics to combat complex respiratory infections. Using proprietary discovery analytics, the company identifies and designs novel microbiome products that prevent disease-causing pathogens from taking hold in the respiratory tract. This approach provides a new solution to help reduce dependency on antibiotics and slow the spread of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms. The company is building a portfolio of novel microbiome products to address major respiratory diseases in both human and animal health. Resilient Biotics is headquartered in the USA and backed by institutional and strategic investors, including Fulcrum Capital and Viking Global Investors. To learn more about Resilient Biotics, visit www.resilientbiotics.com.