Biotalys has secured product registration for EVOCA from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR), strengthening the regulatory foundation for its next-generation biological crop protection pipeline.
The approval follows the completion of California’s public consultation process in July and confirms that EVOCA has met the state’s requirements covering human health, environmental safety and product efficacy. California is among the most demanding regulatory markets for crop protection products, making the registration an important test of Biotalys’ protein-based approach to biological crop protection.
EVOCA is the company’s first protein-based biofungicide and is built on Biotalys’ AGROBODY platform, which uses engineered proteins as biological crop protection agents. The company sees the platform as the basis for developing a new class of biological products that can offer growers alternatives for managing crop diseases.
The California registration is particularly relevant to EVOCA NG, one of the lead assets under Biotalys’ refocused strategy and the company’s expected first commercial product. EVOCA NG uses the same active ingredient and AGROBODY foundation as EVOCA, giving the California decision significance beyond the registered product itself.
Biotalys CEO Carlo Boutton said the California approval demonstrates the ability of the company’s AGROBODY technology to meet demanding scientific and regulatory standards. He said EVOCA NG is expected to reach US growers in 2029, with the latest registration providing greater visibility into the company’s commercialisation pathway.
The California approval also adds to Biotalys’ growing US regulatory base. The company received registration for EVOCA in Florida earlier this year, following prior approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
California’s importance extends beyond its regulatory standards. It is the largest agricultural state in the US and one of the country’s most important markets for high-value crops, giving product registrations in the state commercial significance for biological crop protection companies seeking access to specialty agriculture.
For Biotalys, the immediate value of the California decision is therefore twofold: it expands the regulatory footprint of EVOCA while providing additional support for the development and future launch of EVOCA NG. The company is positioning the milestone as a step towards establishing a commercial platform around protein-based biologicals rather than as a standalone product approval.
