Technology acquisition and business development expert Andy Renz has joined Vestaron Corporation’s team as vice president of business development. Renz has more than a decade of experience in international deal-making for agricultural solutions companies from both a multinational corporation and a start-up company perspective.
At BASF, Renz was responsible for international technology scouting and acquisition. At the early-stage technology company Benson Hill Biosystems, he established commercial partnerships. As an independent consultant he worked with various ag tech start-ups and venture capital firms. Andy has a strong network covering the entire agricultural solutions field. He serves on the industry advisory boards of the biostimulants company Growcentia, the ag tech incubator The Yield Lab, and the conference series Ag Innovation Showcase.
“Since I first met with Vestaron in 2010, I have been fascinated by its unique approach to develop a novel class of biological insecticides,” says Renz. “I was not surprised about Vestaron’s successful development of a strong and diversified product pipeline. Its Spear product series indeed has the power of synthetics combined with the safety of biologicals. Now is the right time to foster Vestaron’s commercialization efforts in existing and new markets and to intensify the discussions with strategic partners. I am truly impressed by the competence, commitment and seriousness of the Vestaron team, and I’m looking forward to taking on the business development tasks as part of this team.”
“I am really excited to have Andy on board. His strong technical background and business development expertise, his strategic thinking and track record in deal-making perfectly complements our team,” says Vestaron CEO John Sorenson. “We look forward to working with him as Vestaron approaches the phase of commercialization and strategic partnerships.”
Vestaron’s Spear line of bioinsecticides uses two new, unique modes of action to kill a broad range of insect pests without affecting beneficial insects, humans or the environment. Synthetic variants of the bioinsecticides as well as crops expressing the active ingredient of the bioinsecticides are in development.