RinoTec technology yields more effective protection for crops, lowers impact on humans and the environment

DAVIS, Calif. (AgPR) June 5, 2025 — Pro Farm Group has received the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) coveted Green Chemistry Challenge Award for Design of Safer and Degradable Chemicals.

The award follows the development of RinoTec™ technology, a biocontrol agent produced from a novel bacterial organism found in nature and enhanced through proprietary, patented fermentation and processing methods. The resulting insecticidal and nematicidal property offers a new and unique mode of action with the potential to replace or reduce the use of standard synthetic pesticides used to control soil-dwelling and foliar crop pests on millions of acres around the globe.

"At Pro Farm Group, our goal is to equip farmers with effective and efficacious crop protection technologies that help our industry minimize or eliminate the use of hazardous substances," said Keith Pitts, SVP-Strategic Solutions and Government Relations. "Receiving this Green Chemistry Award is an honor and positions our company among a small cadre of pioneering organizations that have successfully created alternatives to synthetic chemistries."

Exemptions confirm the value of RinoTec as a safer alternative

As required by the EPA, RinoTec was subjected to multiple toxicity tests by third-party laboratories to assess its risks to human health and non-target organisms, such as birds, fish, aquatic organisms, crops, wild flora and fauna, pollinators and other beneficial insects.

The EPA granted RinoTec technology an exemption from pesticide residue tolerance, confirming the technology's low risk to farmers, farm workers and consumers. Products powered by RinoTec will also have minimal personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements, a 4-hour restricted entry interval (REI), and a 0-day pre-harvest interval (PHI) following application.

"Farmers are increasingly aware their decisions can impact their personal safety, as well as the safety of their employees, neighbors, customers and their families," Pitts says. "RinoTec technology provides a tool to protect crops and gives farmers the peace-of-mind they are doing so with far less risk to people and the environment than many other tools available to them."

Biotech tools unlock power of microbial activity against pests

Discovered and developed by Pro Farm scientists, RinoTec demonstrates strong activity against plant-parasitic nematodes, corn rootworm and wireworms, as well as whiteflies, thrips, mites, certain lepidopterans and other costly foliar and soilborne pests.

Pro Farm scientists used omics tools to identify the metabolic pathway that produces the key compound responsible for the insecticidal and nematicidal activity of the company's proprietary, naturally occurring microbe. This discovery enabled Pro Farm scientists to optimize a modified fermentation media and devise proprietary, patented processes that significantly increase production of the key metabolite. This step-change increase allows Pro Farm Group to create insecticide and nematicide products that perform as well as many classes of toxic chemicals.

The Green Chemistry Challenge Awards presented by the EPA promote the environmental and economic benefits of developing and implementing novel green chemistry solutions. The challenge recognizes and rewards innovative technologies that minimize or eliminate the generation and use of hazardous substances, reduce energy consumption and increase sustainability.

Pro Farm Group, based in Davis, California, is an industry leader in the discovery, development and commercialization of naturally derived pest management and plant health technologies for agriculture and the ornamentals industry.

Three products powered by RinoTec technology will be available for use during the 2026 growing season, pending remaining state registrations.


• ARINO™ Insecticide and Nematicide controls nematodes and wireworms on root and tuber vegetables such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions and carrots.
• BRONTE™ Insecticide and Nematicide is for use against pests of apples, fruiting vegetables, melon, hops and berries. Bronte effectively suppresses whiteflies, thrips and two-spotted spider mites but has a minimal impact on beneficials and pollinators.
• NEOVO™ Insecticide and Nematicide controls nematodes and below-ground pests of corn and sorghum. Neovo is proven to control pyrethroid- and Bt-resistant corn rootworm and lesion nematode. It is user-friendly and provides environmental safety not previously available from liquid and granular in-furrow insecticides.


These insecticide and nematicide products will be used in on-farm demonstrations during the 2025 growing season. Contact your local Pro Farm representative for more details. Performance data and more information are available at ProFarmGroup.com.


About Pro Farm Group
Pro Farm Group is an industry leader in the discovery, development and commercialization of naturally derived pest management and plant health technologies for agriculture, the turf and ornamental industry and water treatment. Pro Farm offers a portfolio of innovative bio-based solutions that complement conventional crop protection programs to help customers control pests, improve plant health and increase crop yields while reducing the environmental pesticide load, decreasing chemical residues on food and fighting the development of pest resistance. For more information visit ProFarmGroup.com.