Yield10 Bioscience Secures Exclusive License to Produce Omega-3 Products from Camelina with Help from Rothamsted Research

In late 2020, Yield10 Bioscience was granted an exclusive technology license from Rothamsted Research to produce omega-3 products from camelina. The US agricultural bioscience company has been collaborating with the UK-based agricultural research institute as part of Rothamsted’s Flagship Program to develop omega-3 oils in camelina.

Yield10 plans to use engineered camelina to commercially produce omega-3 oil and meal products for the aquafeed, pet food, and nutritional markets. President and CEO of Yield10 Bioscience, Oliver Peoples, stated that they are on a path to commercializing omega-3 producing varieties of camelina with the help of Rothamsted’s technology. By 2024, they aim to scale-up omega-3 producing camelina and submit key regulatory filings in preparation for an initial commercial launch into the oil and meal markets.

Rothamsted Research is a leading non-profit research centre focusing on strategic agricultural science. Over the past decade, their team led by science director Prof Johnathan Napier has successfully produced docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) oils in camelina seed. Yield10 is headquartered in Woburn with a Canadian subsidiary and specializes in developing crop systems and utilizing trait factories and fast field testing systems to develop seed traits for agriculture and food industries. They are partnering with major agricultural companies to introduce new traits for canola, soybean, corn, and other crops as well as working on developing improved camelina varieties as a platform crop for producing and commercializing nutritional oils, proteins, and bioplastics.