Agricultural Biologicals Market, 2023-2035: Distribution by Type of Product, Source of Product, Mode of Application, Type of Crop Treated and Key Geographical Regions: Industry Trends and Global Forecasts, 2023-2035

Agricultural Biologicals Market Overview

The global agricultural biologicals market (including biopesticides market, biofertilizers market and biostimulants market) is estimated to be worth $13.76 billion in 2023. The global market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 9.98% during the forecast period. The growth in the market size over the next decade is likely to be the result of a rise in the demand for organic food coupled with the growing focus on sustainable agriculture.

Agricultural biologicals, used interchangeably with agricultural biologics, encompass a diverse array of products, including biopesticides, biofertilizers and biostimulants (derived from naturally occurring microorganisms, plant extracts, beneficial insects or other organic matter) used for enhancing soil fertility, biological activity, and the growth of plants. These products are environmentally friendly, leave no harmful residues in the ecosystem and mitigate the risks to the health of farmers and consumers, associated with the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Years of detrimental agricultural practices and excessive use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers have resulted in the reduction of beneficial microorganisms in the soil, leading to poor soil quality and compromised crop health. Agricultural biologics, including biopesticides, biofertilizers and biostimulants, are frequently used with the primary objective of reducing the reliance on conventional chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Furthermore, agricultural biologics often serve as the foundation of sustainable agriculture and organic farming systems for organic food production. Driven by the growing demand for food for the burgeoning global population and increased sustainable farming practices to meet consumer preferences for organic food products, biologicals in agriculture are likely to witness substantial market growth during the forecast period.

Key Market Insights

The Agricultural Biologicals Market, 2023-2035: Distribution by Type of Product (Biopesticides / Biocontrols, Biofertilizers and Biostimulants), Source of Product (Microbes, Plant Extracts and Other Sources), Mode of Application (Foliar Sprays, Seed Treatments, Soil Treatments and Other Application Methods) Type of Crop Treated (Cereals and Pulses, Fruits and Nuts, Green Fodder, Vegetables and Tubers, Oilseeds, Industrial Crops, Textile Crops and Others) and Key Geographical Regions (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and Latin America): Industry Trends and Global Forecasts market report features an extensive study of the current market landscape, market size, market forecast and future opportunities for the companies involved in the agricultural biologicals market. The market research report highlights the efforts of several agricultural biologics manufacturers engaged in this rapidly emerging market segment of the crop production industry. Key takeaways of the agricultural biologicals market research report are briefly discussed below.

Introduction to Agricultural Biologics; Sustainable Farming Driving the Market Growth

Agricultural biologics or agricultural biologicals include a vast array of biopesticides, biofertilizers and biostimulants derived from natural sources. These products primarily enhance soil fertility, and improve plant growth, mitigating reliance on chemical pesticides and fertilizers. These biologic crop solutions have emerged as a promising alternative over conventional chemical pesticides and fertilizers owing to their multiple benefits for sustainable farming, including shorter product development timelines, higher biological efficiency, and versatile application methods. Agricultural biologicals are expected to offer sustainable farming practices, however, the development of these products is still in infancy. Although agricultural biologics are subject to inconsistent performance, it is worth highlighting that these bio innovations are anticipated to become a powerful modality for biological crop protection in the cultivation of a variety of crops. In 2020, the European Union (EU) implemented several policies in order to mitigate the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers by 50%, reducing the global carbon footprint. Further, in August 2021, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) initiated the Green Food System Strategy, promoting the use of biostimulants and biopesticides. In the near future, the market growth of agricultural biologics will be driven by the increase in the demand for sustainable farming practices across the globe for organic food production.

Competitive Landscape of Agricultural Biologicals Manufacturing Companies

The agricultural biologicals companies landscape features over 200 companies offering a range of biologic crop solutions, including biostimulants, biopesticides and biofertilizers. Overall, the market landscape of agricultural biologics is well-fragmented, featuring the presence of very small, small, mid-sized, large, and very large companies, which claim to have the required expertise to offer novel biologic crop solutions for different types of crops worldwide. It is interesting to highlight that most of these (~40%) agricultural biologics manufacturers are located in Asia Pacific, followed by Europe; prominent manufacturing hubs in Asia Pacific include India and China. In addition to this, more than 35% of agricultural biologicals companies offer all three types of products, namely biostimulants, biopesticides and biofertilizers. Additionally, key players, including Syngenta Ag, Bayer Ag, BASF SE, and Marrone Bio Innovations, offer a portfolio of leading microbial biopesticides providing biological crop protection to a variety of crops. 

Market Trends Analysis: Partnership and Collaboration on the Rise for Agricultural Biologics Development and Distribution

Stakeholders in the biological crop protection industry have forged several partnerships in order to strengthen their agricultural biologicals portfolios and augment the reach of their proprietary crop protection products. It is worth highlighting that over 70% of these partnerships have been inked since 2021. Notably, the majority of such deals are focused on distribution of biopesticides across different regions, followed by product development and acquisitions signed for biofertilizers. In May 2023, Syngenta Ag signed an agreement with Unium Bioscience for the distribution of biostimulants across Northwest Europe. In another deal inked between Bayer Ag and Kimitec in February 2023, the companies partnered together to develop and commercialize their novel biopesticides and biostimulants product portfolio.

It is interesting to note that close to 45% of the deals are inked by the players established in Europe. As such, the agricultural biologicals companies in other regions are expected to continue to enter into portfolio expansions and distribution agreements, driving the market growth for biological crop solutions. 

Market Trends Analysis: Increase in Patent Publications Reflect the Rising Interest of companies in Agricultural Biologicals for Sustainable Agriculture

More than 1,300 patents related to agricultural biologicals have been filed, over a period of five years (2019-2023), highlighting the substantial efforts made by industry stakeholders and researchers in the biologic crop solutions industry. Around 75% of these patents were patent applications for the development of novel biologic crop solutions. In addition, the maximum number of patents focused on agricultural biologics were filed by PI Industries, followed by BASF SE and Monsanto.

Agricultural Biologicals Market Size: Biopesticides Market Segment to Hold the Largest Market Share

The global market for agricultural biologicals (including biopesticides market, biofertilizers market and biostimulants market) is estimated to be worth USD13.76 billion in 2023. The market growth is expected to be driven by the rising demand for organic food products and sustainable agriculture practices leading to a CAGR of ~9.98% over the forecast period. It is worth highlighting that, in terms of type of product, biopesticides are expected to capture the majority market share in the agricultural biologicals market during the forecast period. In addition to this, presently, close to 55% of the market share is captured by companies offering biological crop solutions that can be applied as foliar sprays.

Regional Analysis: North America and Europe Emerged as the Hubs for Agricultural Biologicals Manufacturing; Asia Pacific to be the Fastest Growing Market

Presently, North America and Europe capture close to 60% of the market share of the overall agricultural biologicals market. In recent years, demand for biologic crop solutions, such as biofertilizers and biopesticides, in the North America region has witnessed a tremendous increase. Moreover, the EU implemented the Farm to Fork strategy in 2020, initiating substitution of chemical pesticides and fertilizers with agricultural biologicals. It is worth highlighting that, in the coming years, owing to the anticipated increase in the demand for organic food products, Asia Pacific region is likely to grow at a higher CAGR as compared to other regions.

Key Players in Agricultural Biologicals Market

Examples of key companies engaged in agricultural biologicals market (which have also been profiled in this market report; the complete list of companies is available in the full report) include AMVAC, Andermatt, BASF SE, Bayer AG, Certis Biologicals, Corteva Agriscience, Chr. Hansen, FBSciences, Koppert Biological Systems, Lallemand, Marrone Bio Innovations, Novozymes, Stoller, Syngenta AG, UPL, Vegalab, Valent Biosciences, and Verdisian Life Sciences. It is interesting to note that in May 2023, Novozymes entered into an agreement with Azelis to distribute the former’s biologic crop solutions in Malaysia. Such types of agreements are expected to drive the demand for agricultural biologicals across the globe, resulting in substantial market growth during the forecast period.

Recent Developments in Agricultural Biologicals Market

Several recent developments have taken place in the field of agricultural biologicals market, some of which have been outlined below. These developments, even if they took place post the release of our market report, substantiate the overall market trends that we have outlined in our analysis.

In August 2023, The Mosaic Company announced the formation of its biologic crop solutions platform under the name Mosaic Biosciences. The agricultural biologics offered under the platform will enable farmers to naturally support the soil biology and maximize the yield potential of crops.

In June 2023, AgBiome signed a product development agreement with Ginkgo Bioworks, a US based biotech company. Under the terms of the agreement, Ginkgo Bioworks plans to use its ultra-high throughput screening platform to support AgBiome on the development of certain novel microbial crop protection products for sustainable agriculture.

Scope of the Report

The market research report presents an in-depth analysis of the various companies that are engaged in the global market of agricultural biologicals, across different segments.

The market report presents an in-depth analysis, highlighting the capabilities of various stakeholders engaged in this industry, across different geographies. Amongst other elements, the market report includes:

• A preface providing an introduction to the full report, Agricultural Biologicals Market, 2023-2035. 
• An outline of the systematic research methodology adopted to conduct the study on agricultural biologicals market, providing insights on the various assumptions, methodologies, and quality control measures employed to ensure accuracy and reliability of our findings.
• An overview of economic factors that impact the overall agricultural biologicals market, including historical trends, currency fluctuation, foreign exchange impact, recession, and inflation measurement.
• An executive summary of the key insights captured during our research, offering a high-level view on the current landscape of the agricultural biologicals market and its likely evolution in the short to mid and long term.
• A general overview of agricultural biologics, highlighting details on different types of agricultural biologics based on their function. It also features the various advantages of biologic crop solutions in the agriculture industry. Further, it provides information on the various opportunities and future perspectives associated with agricultural biologicals, as well as the growing need to produce such crop protection products.
• A detailed assessment of the overall market landscape of the companies offering agricultural biologics, based on several relevant parameters, such as year of establishment, company size (in terms of number of employees), and location of headquarters (North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific). It also features a detailed analysis on the type of product offered (biostimulants, biopesticides / biocontrols or biofertilizers), type of biostimulant offered (plant growth regulators, plant health enhancers and other biostimulants), type of biopesticide / biocontrol offered (biofungicides, bioinsecticides, bioherbicides and other biopesticides), type of biofertilizer offered (soil nutrient enhancers, soil microbiome enhancers and other biofertilizers), source of product offered (plant extracts, microbials, synthetic biochemicals, macrobials and other source), type of product formulation (liquid, solid / powder or both), and type of crop treated (vegetables and tubers, fruits and nuts, grains and cereals, legumes and pulses, ornamental flowers, oil seeds and other crops), mode of application (foliar spray, fertigation / chemigation, soil spray, seed treatment, soil mixing, soil drenching and root dipping), number of products offered (1 to 10 products, 11 to 20 products, 21 to 30 products, 31 to 40 products and more than 40 products) and most active players (based on number of products offered).
• A detailed competitiveness analysis of the companies developing agricultural biologicals based on their supplier strength (in terms of number of years of experience of a company in this domain and company size) and product portfolio strength (in terms of type of products offered, type of crops treated, source of products offered, mode of applications and type of product formulations). 
• Elaborate profiles of prominent companies (shortlisted based on product portfolio strength) offering agricultural biologicals. Each profile features a brief overview of the company (including information on year of establishment, number of employees, location of headquarters and leadership team), details related to its financial performance (if available), agricultural biological product portfolio, recent developments and an informed future outlook. 
• A detailed analysis of the partnerships inked between various agricultural biologicals companies engaged in this market, since 2020, covering distribution agreements, product development agreements, acquisitions, product development and commercialization agreements, research and development agreements, asset acquisitions, commercialization agreements, supply agreements, product development and distribution agreements, and product integration agreements.
• An in-depth analysis of various patents that have been filed / granted related to agricultural biologicals, since 2019, taking into consideration parameters, such as publication year, geographical region, CPC symbols, leading players (in terms of number of patents filled / granted) and type of organization. In addition, the chapter includes a detailed patent benchmarking and an insightful valuation analysis, highlighting the leading patents (in terms of number of citations).
• A qualitative analysis of the five competitive forces, including threats for new entrants, bargaining power of agricultural biologicals developers, bargaining power of end-users, threats of substitute products and rivalry among existing competitors under an insightful Porter's Five Forces framework. 
• An in-depth analysis of the factors that can impact the growth of the agricultural biologicals market. It also features identification and analysis of key drivers, potential restraints, emerging opportunities, and existing challenges.

The key objective of this market report is to provide a detailed market forecast analysis in order to estimate the existing market size and future opportunity for agricultural biologicals manufacturers over the next decade. Based on multiple parameters, likely adoption trends and through primary validations, we have provided an informed estimate on the market evolution during the forecast period 2023-2035. The market report also features the likely distribution of the current and forecasted opportunity within the agricultural biologicals market across various segments, such as type of product (biopesticides / biocontrols, biofertilizers and biostimulants), source of product (microbes, plant extracts and other sources), mode of application (foliar sprays, seed treatments, soil treatments and other application methods) type of crop treated (cereals and pulses, fruits and nuts, green fodder, vegetables and tubers, oilseeds, industrial crops, textile crops and others) and geography (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and Latin America). In order to account for future uncertainties and to add robustness to our model, we have provided three market forecast scenarios, namely conservative, base and optimistic scenarios, representing different tracks of the industry’s growth.

The opinions and insights presented in the market report were influenced by discussions held with stakeholders in the industry. The report features detailed transcripts of interviews held with the following industry stakeholders: 

• David Selakovic (President, Vegalab)
• Shannon Wentz (Global Director, Communications, Acadian Plant Health) 
• Zhang (Sales Representative, Jiahe Biology) 

Frequently Asked Questions

Question 1: What is agricultural biologicals?

Answer: Agricultural biologicals is a widely used terminology used to describe a broad range of crop protection inputs derived from naturally occurring microbes, plant extracts, beneficial insects / mites and other organic matter.

Question 2: How big is the AG biologics market?

Answer: The global agricultural biologicals market is expected to be worth around $13.76 billion in 2023.

Question 3: At what CAGR is the agricultural biologicals market expected to grow?

Answer: The agricultural biologicals market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.98% over the forecast period.

Question 4: What are the key growth drivers in the agricultural biologicals market?

Answer: The increase in the demand for organic food products coupled with rising focus on sustainable agricultural practices is expected to drive the growth of agricultural biologicals market.

Question 5: Which region has the highest number of companies manufacturing agricultural biologicals?

Answer: Presently, 40% of the companies engaged in manufacturing agricultural biologicals are established in Asia Pacific.

Question 6: Who are the key players in the agricultural biologicals market?

Answer: Examples of key players engaged in the agricultural biologicals market (which have also been captured in this market report) include AMVAC, BASF SE, Bayer AG, BioSafe Systems, Koppert Biological Systems, Stoller and Syngenta AG.

Question 7: What are the leading market segments in the agricultural biologicals market?

Answer: Currently, in terms of type of product, biopesticides market captures the largest market share. Further, in terms of source of product, microbial products are expected to capture a prominent share of the current and future market size.

Question 8: Which region has the highest market share in the agricultural biologicals market?

Answer: Currently, North America and Europe collectively hold around 60% of the market share. However, in the long run, the agricultural biologicals market in Asia Pacific is expected to grow at a relatively higher CAGR.

Question 9: What are the upcoming trends in the agricultural biologicals market?

Answer: The agricultural biologicals market is witnessing a shift towards the implementation of genetically editing technologies across various manufacturing stages. This has led to enhanced efficiency and productivity; for instance, the use of RNAi technologies by Bayer AG for the development of pest resistant microbial strains, which can be used as biopesticides.