--New Lawn Grass Varieties Can Improve Quality and Reduce the Cost, Maintenance Time and Carbon Footprint of Lawns--
DAVIS, Calif. and MARYSVILLE, Ohio (June 5, 2008) – Arcadia Biosciences, Inc, and The Scotts Company LLC, announce a research agreement to develop Nitrogen Use Efficient (NUE) turf grass varieties. Under the agreement, ScottsMiracle-Gro has an exclusive global license to develop and commercialize turf grasses utilizing Arcadia NUE technology for use in a wide range of consumer and commercial markets.
With an estimated 40 million acres of managed turf grass in the United States alone, lawn grass is the world’s most cultivated non-agricultural plant. Nitrogen Use Efficient Lawn Grass can enable consumers and commercial landscape professionals to maintain healthy lawns with lower costs, greater convenience, and reduced environmental impacts.
"Great-looking lawns have a powerful psychological appeal and Americans spend about $30 billion annually and considerable time and effort to maintain their lawns. Nitrogen Use Efficient Lawn Grass can have a significant positive impact on the cost, convenience, and carbon footprint of maintaining a healthy lawn," said Eric Rey, president and CEO of Arcadia. "The Scotts Miracle- Gro Company is the established global leader in the lawn and garden care product industry. People worldwide trust the Scotts brand, which makes the company the ideal partner to enable broad access to this important technology."
"ScottsMiracle-Gro is a market leader in providing innovative products for the lawn care industry. We view the development of Nitrogen Use Efficient turf grass varieties as integral in our continued efforts to offer sustainable products that further enhance the already acknowledged environmental benefits of turf," said Rich Shank, chief environmental officer of Scotts.
About Arcadia Biosciences, Inc.
Based in Davis, Calif., with additional facilities in Seattle, Wash. and Phoenix, Ariz., Arcadia Biosciences is an agricultural biotechnology company focused on the development of agricultural products that improve the environment and enhance human health. For more information visit www.arcadiabio.com
About ScottsMiracle-Gro
With more than $2.9 billion in worldwide sales and more than 6,000 associates, The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Scotts Company LLC, is the world's largest marketer of branded consumer products for lawn and garden care, with products for professional horticulture as well. The Company's brands are the most recognized in the industry. In the U.S., the Company's Scotts®, Miracle-Gro® and Ortho® brands are market- leading in their categories, as is the consumer Roundup® brand, which is marketed in North America and most of Europe exclusively by Scotts and owned by Monsanto. The Company also owns Smith$amp;Hawken, a leading brand of garden-inspired products that includes pottery, watering equipment, gardening tools, outdoor furniture and live goods, and Morning Song, a leading brand in the wild bird food market. In Europe, the Company's brands include Weedol®, Pathclear®, Evergreen®, Levington®, Miracle-Gro®, KB®, Fertiligene® and Substral®. For additional information, visit us at http://www.scotts.com/.
