Engineered microbes that establish on plant roots before producing nitrogen could offer growers a new approach to crop nutrition.
Bayer Crop Science has entered a strategic collaboration with California-based Switch Bioworks to advance a new generation of biological nitrogen technologies that could eventually provide growers with additional options for crop nutrition management.
The partnership will initially focus on biological nitrogen fixation, an area that has attracted significant industry attention as agriculture seeks ways to improve nutrient-use efficiency while maintaining crop productivity. Bayer and Switch say the collaboration will combine Switch's microbial engineering platform with Bayer's expertise in product development, formulation, field testing, commercialization, and crop genetics.
Switch Bioworks, a Stanford University spinout, has developed genetically engineered microbes designed to solve a longstanding challenge in biological nitrogen research. According to the company, microbes engineered to produce nitrogen often struggle to establish themselves on plant roots, while microbes that establish successfully may not generate enough nitrogen to provide meaningful value to farmers.
The company's approach uses a genetic "switch" that allows microbes to colonize plant roots first and activate nitrogen production only after establishment. In controlled grow-room studies cited by the company, the technology produced five times more nitrogen than continuously active comparison strains.
For growers, the development reflects the broader push toward biological crop inputs that complement traditional fertilizer programs rather than replace them outright. The agricultural biologicals sector has expanded rapidly in recent years as farmers seek tools that can help optimize nutrient management, improve resilience under variable growing conditions, and address sustainability goals.
"Growers need more options to manage unpredictable conditions, protect crop potential and optimize their crop nutrition programs," said Benoit Hartmann, Insights, Innovation & Partnerships Lead at Bayer Crop Science. He added that biological products can play a role in helping farmers meet both production and sustainability objectives.
Switch founder and CEO Dr. Tim Schnabel said Bayer's experience in biological crop solutions and corn production makes the company an ideal partner as Switch works to advance the technology.
The collaboration comes as Switch continues field development efforts. The company has received authorization from both the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for field trials of its engineered microbial fertilizer, with testing underway at multiple locations across the U.S. Midwest. Switch has also secured approvals in Brazil through the country's National Technical Biosafety Commission (CTNBio).
While the technology remains in the development stage, the partnership signals continued investment by major agricultural companies in biological nitrogen solutions. Nitrogen fertilizer remains one of the largest input costs for many corn growers, making technologies that improve nitrogen efficiency an area of considerable interest across the industry.
If successful under commercial farming conditions, biological nitrogen-fixing products could give growers another tool to support crop nutrition programs while potentially reducing dependence on conventionally manufactured nitrogen fertilizers. However, field trial results and future commercialization efforts will ultimately determine how such technologies fit into practical farm management systems.
Photo: Bayer