Bontera BioAg.
Natures Advanced Materials for Sustainable Agriculture

The advancement in agricultural innovation is the backbone of Bontera BioAg’s mission. By improving soil fertility, overcoming crop biotic and abiotic challenges, and advancing sustainable agricultural footprints, Bontera has utilized beneficial soil microbes as an effective tool to enhance crop yields and soil health. For the past ten years, Bontera has pursued and maintained a focus on designing specific microbial products based on the growth requirements and needs during different phases of the crop and plant cycle. This includes seed germination, root & shoot development, photosynthesis, flowering, and fruiting stages. It is important to note that microbial products do not necessarily provide plants with nutrients but rather a range of microbes that assist in creating conditions that are conducive to maximizing plant growth simply by improving the soil’s fertility profile. For example, after the successful germination of a seed, macronutrients such as phosphate are needed for root and shoot development. For this phase, Bontera offers microbial products that can solubilize or free up phosphate from the already existing soil-bound phosphate thereby making it available to growing roots and shoots. The product contains many potent phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) capable of solubilizing inorganic phosphorus from insoluble compounds by releasing low molecular weight organic acids. Their hydroxyl and carboxyl groups then chelate the cations bound to the phosphate to convert it into soluble forms. Below is an example of Bontera’s high-performing phosphate-solubilizing microbial product (Bontera Phospho-Release) when tested in the laboratory, which indicates that large quantities of phosphate are released from the soil.

As the seed germinates, and roots start to grow and stabilize in soil, Bontera offers a specialized soil & root product called “Bontera Tricho Power” which helps create an optimal rhizosphere environment and protects roots from soil-borne diseases. Additionally, this OMRI-listed product is highly effective against harmful nematodes and various diseases that attack the roots.

During the plant’s active phase of growth, plants carry out photosynthesis to fix nitrogen which is required for the synthesis of proteins, nucleic acids, and glycoproteins. About 50-100 kg of nitrogenous chemicals such as synthetic urea or ammonium compounds are added per acre of agricultural soil. These chemicals are highly volatile and when released into the atmosphere, contribute to the already existing greenhouse gases. Some excess chemicals are bound to soil particles via ionic interactions and some of them leach into streams and rivers causing environmental pollution. Bontera has created a sustainable solution to overcome this challenge called, “Bontera Nitrofix”. This product contains both endophytic symbiotic soil microbes as well as free-living soil microbes that produce the enzyme, “nitrogenase” which converts the atmospheric nitrogen into a useable form of nitrogen for plant uptake. This product is effective in soybean, peanuts, corn, cotton, sugarcane, sunflower, and a wide variety of other beans and lentil crops.

The foliar product, “Bontera PC-10” is a powerful biofertilizer that enhances the systemic resistance in plants to safeguard against foliar diseases by improving plant immunity. Depending on the severity of the disease, weekly or bi-weekly treatments are recommended until the crop is recovered. Most often, this product is applied in conjunction with our nutrient-rich “Bontera Del Mar” product for a faster recovery.

Likewise, the “Bontera NT-10” biofertilizer is designed to effectively safeguard plants against harmful nematodes by improving their systemic resistance. This product is even more effective when used along with our “Bontera SA-10” biofertilizer.

More recently, Bontera has developed a wholesome advanced product in the form of seed-coating – “Bontera Seed Coat”. This product is directly coated onto the seed surface providing them with critically important beneficial soil microbes, micronutrients, and the sources of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium all-together in a single package along with a pH modulator. This coating helps seeds provide an optimal growth environment which leads to enhanced seed germination, sprouting, and healthy root and shoot development. Such products save farmers the labor and application cost at the time of seeding. The added microbes in the coating not only serve as biofertilizers but also offer a dual role as biocontrol agents providing seeds and developing roots with protection against soilborne diseases. Bontera has developed coatings for a variety of commercial crops such as soybeans, corn, and grasses. One important feature of this coating is that it is OMRI-listed and in compliance with the USDA’s National Organic Program.

Nutrient availability is vital for improving soil fertility, root development, and crop production. Bontera developed “Bontera Del Mar”, which is an organically rich, water-soluble powder that contains an extract of brown seaweed- Ascophyllum nodosum, an abundant source of polysaccharides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, enzymes, bioactive peptides, growth hormones, and over 70 vitamins and minerals. This product is effective in stimulating plant growth, improving nutrient uptake efficiency, and providing tolerance against biotic and abiotic stresses.

Most of the Bontera products are designed to focus on certain functionality to meet the needs of a growing plant. It may be nitrogen fixation, phosphate availability, nutrient uptake, etc. A broad-spectrum multifunctional product, “Bontera SA-10” Microbial Soil Enhancer is a soluble powder that was created to address multiple needs of a growing plant throughout the plants’ growing phases. It is a scientifically formulated proprietary blend of microbes containing bacteria, fungi, and mycorrhizae selected for their ability to enhance soil fertility and root and plant growth through in-furrow, soil, and foliar applications. Bontera SA-10 increases the efficiency of fertilizer, improves the microbial balance in the soil, strengthens germination and root development, and enhances soil fertility.

Bontera BioAg is continuously seeking to create new and innovative agricultural products to address the various challenges farmers face worldwide. Many specific products are currently under development with our R&D team and their expertise in microbial coatings on seed surfaces as well as micro- and macro-encapsulation technologies. With facilities that expand over several continents, and our very own trial facilities that include fields, tunnels, and greenhouses, Bontera is poised to bring innovative microbial-based agricultural products quickly and effectively to the marketplace to serve the growing needs of farmers worldwide.