Biological fertiliser scale-up Neutrog Australia set to bloom after $3m equity crowdfunding raise

Biological fertiliser scale-up Neutrog Australia set to bloom after $3m equity crowdfunding raise

South Australian biological fertiliser business Neutrog Australia has cracked through its maximum raise target of $3 million as part of an equity crowdfunding campaign to prepare the company’s soil for its next phase of growth.

Hosted by equity crowdfunding platform OnMarket, the campaign garnered support from 794 individual investors following its launch on 11 May, with the raise becoming oversubscribed since then.

It is the latest in a string of successful equity crowdfunding campaigns over the past few months, following crypto exchange Coinstash which raised more than $1.3 million, green hydrogen producer LINE Hydrogen which raised more than $1 million, and equity crowdfunding platform Birchal which hit its maximum of $3 million using its own technology.

Neutrog managing director Angus Irwin, who founded the Adelaide Hills-based biological fertiliser business in 1988, said the decision to raise funds through crowdfunding platform OnMarket aligned with the company’s history and its future direction.

“It was imperative to me that if I was going to invite investors into the business for our next phase of growth, those people needed to really understand who Neutrog are and be genuinely engaged in the ethos of our business – not just the bottom line,” Irwin said.

“The strategic direction and growth of Neutrog has become increasingly evident through our commitment to R&D.

“Research and trials in our onsite laboratory and in the field with R&D partners Elders (ASX: ELD), have well and truly demonstrated the capacity of products such as our soon-to-be-released advanced biological product POPUL8, to achieve outstanding outcomes in commercial applications. This has obviously become even more relevant with the mounting pressure on global fertiliser supply.”

As a 34-year-old business, Neutrog stands out from the plethora of early-stage businesses that traditionally populate the pages of equity crowdfunding sites, but according to OnMarket co-founder and managing director Nick Motteram the company’s age gave Nuetrog a unique proposition in the crowded space.

“We are really pleased to have worked with such a well-known business as Neutrog on their highly successful raise,” Motteram.

“The best part is that Neutrog undertook a crowdfunding offer for the right reasons – to allow their clients and supporters to become part of their business and their success.”

Since the company’s founding, Neutrog has built up an impressive portfolio of fertiliser brands, and now sells different nutrient-rich, organic products to both home gardeners and commercial growing operators.

One such product is Sudden Impact for Roses, which officially launched in 2001 after being created in consultation with professional rose growers and amateur rosarians. The fertiliser is now used by major public rose gardens around Australia including at Flemington Racecourse, the International Rose Garden, the Victoria State Rose Garden and more.

International Rose Garden, 2001. L to R: Merv Trimper, President of the Rose Society of South Australia; Angus Irwin, managing director and founder of Neutrog and the Hon. Leigh Davis MLC help launch Sudden Impact for Roses.

 

Other products in the group’s home gardening range include Bush Tucker, Gyganic for Veggies, Fruit and Citrus, Kahoona, Sudden Impact for Lawns and Upsurge.

A number of those brands are available for commercial cultivation operations too, and the company also works in consultation with farmers to develop special blends for specific purposes.

In terms of research and development, the company has already created its very own static air compositing system called Poultus, a proprietary soil probiotic called GOGO Juice, and a ‘super mulch’ dubbed Whoflungdung.

A variety of projects remain under development, including a kitty litter called Catcandoo and a specialised tomato fertiliser called Dead Horse.

Irwin said Neutrog intends to use the funds to expand its laboratory into a research centre with a greater biological capacity which will support further product development and international expansion.

A new education centre will also form part of the same project, to create a custom space to meet enquiries from industry groups, tertiary institutions and schools wanting to learn more about the biological fertiliser business.

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