Technology developed by Scottish biotech Biotangents, which will improve the process for treating disease among cows, has received further funding support.
Bovine mastitis alone is estimated to cost the global dairy farming industry around £20 billion every year, costing the average UK dairy farm up to £25,000 a year.
Antibiotics are estimated to be unnecessary in up to 40% of cases and Biotangents’s solution is an on-farm diagnostic device that provides highly accurate results in less than two hours, safely enabling the farmer to make an informed treatment decision.
The data is sent to the farmer’s phone and, if required, can be sent to their management system, vets, and milk processors.
While focused on next generation diagnostics for the animal health sector, Biotangents also sees future applications for its technology, including human healthcare and environmental monitoring.
The £2.3 million investment round was led by St Andrews-based investment firm Eos and British Business Investments through their Regional Angels Programme, and existing investors and Kelvin Capital and Scottish Enterprise.
Senior agritech adviser Nicky Deasy joins the board on behalf of Eos as an investor director. Following the investment, Biotangents will begin on-farm trials across the UK and internationally later next year.
Fiona Marshall, CEO of Biotangents, said: “Biotangents is on the cusp of full market launch with a technology that leads to better herd health, much improved productivity, and significantly higher levels of sustainability.”
Jill Arnold, investment relationship director at Eos, said: “Scottish science that improves lives, and has global market potential, is core to our focus at Eos and Biotangents fits that criteria perfectly, not just in terms of addressing antimicrobial resistance in livestock, but also in improved animal husbandry.”
Ross McDermid, CCO at Biotangents, said: “This investment endorses our game-changing technology, and means we can now seize the huge market opportunity to support farmers, vets, and the wider dairy industry.”
Subsea investment
Foresight Group, the private equity and infrastructure investment manager, invested in J+S Subsea, which specialises in the provision, repair and refurbishment of subsea control systems.
Headquartered in Dyce, Aberdeen, the current management team led a management buy out in 2020 and since then revenue has more than doubled.
Following the investment, Mark Patterson joins as non-executive chair, and Andrew Glen, as CFO.
