Itaconix (AIM:ITX) shares surged 9.5% to 115.0 after the company began US field trials of its crop polymer BioVail GRZ 200L.
The company has evaluated crop applications periodically over the past 15 years and says full quantification of plant-growth results is expected after harvest, with the current work building on earlier small-scale internal studies and partner collaborations, the company said.
If the harvest data indicate potential benefits, Itaconix plans to progressively increase the size and scope of trials over the next few years to confirm and substantiate claims in support of full commercial efforts.
"These initial field trials are an important next step in evaluating performance under real agricultural conditions," said John R. Shaw, CEO.
The company frames the programme as exploratory at this stage and says multi-season assessment will be required before any commercial roll-out is considered.
