botanicals

Herbolea Biotech Acquires Minority Stake in Agroils Technologies

Herbolea Biotech Acquires Minority Stake in Agroils Technologies to Address Growing Demand for Bio-Based, Formaldehyde-Free Resins

Florence, Italy – 12th, August 2024 – Herbolea Biotech SpA, a leading innovator in bio-refining technologies, today announced that it has acquired a minority stake in Agroils Technologies Srl, joining forces with existing shareholders JOil Pte Ltd of Singapore and business angels group Jatropha11 Srl. This strategic move is poised to strengthen the development and commercialization of Agroils’ innovative bio-based resins in the wood panel sector.

The wood panel sector is facing increasing pressure to find alternatives to petro-derived, formaldehyde-based resins. Formaldehyde has been linked to cancer in humans. Agroils Technologies is at the forefront of developing environmentally friendly and high-performance bio-based resins to address this critical industry need. 

“We decided to increase our participation in Agroils in light of the recent positive developments by Agroils in the wood panel sector, an industry that has been traditionally slow in embracing more sustainable and safer solutions. The company has been able to establish robust collaborations with leading wood panel manufacturers that are demonstrating commitment in validating Agroils' proprietary bio-resin technology.” said Giovanni Venturini Del Greco, CEO of Herbolea Biotech. 

About Herbolea Biotech

Herbolea Biotech SpA is a leading biotech company in botanical extraction. With offices in Florence and Los Angeles, Herbolea aims at providing sustainable technologies for processing plants into high quality products for various industrial applications in the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, flavor and fragrances sectors. 

For more information, please contact:

Giovanni Venturini Del Greco, CEO Herbolea Biotech SpA 

info@herbolea.com, +39 055 031 7151

Herbolea Biotech and Laso-Bio Join Forces in Strategic Partnership for Sustainable Hemp Extraction

Herbolea Biotech SpA ("Herbolea"), an Italian biotech company leader in the development of solventless extraction technologies, and Laso-Bio, a new biotech company affiliated to leading Maroccan healthcare company Promamec, are delighted to announce a strategic partnership and licensing agreement that will shape the nascent hemp and cannabis extraction industries in Morocco.

Under this landmark agreement, Laso-Bio will gain rights to utilize Herbolea's cutting-edge extraction and purification technologies in Morocco, enabling Laso-Bio to lead the path in the sustainable hemp extraction in the region. The collaboration will leverage Herbolea's expertise and advanced technologies to ensure the production of high-quality extracts both for the internal and the international markets.

At the core of this partnership is the integration of Herbolea's pioneering technologies, Bio-Herbolysis™, Hydrocan™ and Distillac™ which enable an environmentally friendly extraction of active principles.

The Bio-Herbolysis™ technology empowers Laso-Bio to extract the full phyto-complex of the plant into a lipid base from fresh, never dried or frozen material, a process known as wet processing. This innovative approach eliminates the need for drying, preserving the plant's original attributes and enhancing the overall quality of the extracted compounds.

Furthermore, Herbolea's Hydrocan™ technology selectively concentrates cannabinoids to over 90% potency, while effectively remediating THC, ensuring compliance with the legal threshold throughout the entire extraction process. This breakthrough extraction method allows Laso-Bio to produce highly potent and compliant hemp extracts that meet the stringent European market requirements.

 

To support Laso-Bio's operations, Herbolea will deliver state-of-the-art equipment with a processing capacity of over 400,000 kilograms of fresh biomass per year, this equipment will empower Laso-Bio to conduct their extraction operations efficiently and sustainably.

 

"Laso-Bio is proud to join forces with Herbolea Biotech and introduce their state-of-the-art extraction technologies to the Moroccan hemp industry," said Hatim El Kabbaj, CEO at Laso-Bio. "This partnership aligns perfectly with our vision to drive innovation, sustainability, and superior product quality. By leveraging Herbolea's expertise and advanced equipment, we aim to become a leading supplier of premium hemp extracts not only in Morocco but also in the European market."

 

Giovanni Venturini, CEO at Herbolea Biotech, expressed his excitement about the partnership, stating, "We are honored that Laso-Bio has chosen Herbolea as their preferred partner for hemp extraction. Our shared commitment to sustainability and delivering exceptional product quality will undoubtedly pave the way for the Moroccan hemp industry to thrive and grow. With Laso-Bio's expertise and aspirations to export to the European market both ingredients and finished products, we are confident that this partnership will be instrumental in reshaping the hemp extraction landscape."

 

ABOUT LASO-BIO


Laso-Bio is a leading Moroccan company focused on the production and distribution of pharmaceutical and healthcare products. With a strong commitment to innovation and sustainability, Laso-Bio aims to become a leading supplier of premium hemp extracts in Morocco and the European market. Their partnership with Herbolea Biotech positions them at the forefront of the evolving hemp extraction landscape, delivering sustainable and high-quality products that meet international standards of excellence.

 

ABOUT HERBOLEA BIOTECH SpA

Herbolea Biotech SpA is an Italian biotech company specializing in licensing proprietary technologies for botanical extraction. Its innovative platform enables solventless and environmentally friendly extraction processes, preserving the plant's original phytocomplex and ensuring superior product quality. Herbolea is dedicated to promoting sustainable manufacturing and driving innovation in the hemp extraction industry. The company has signed licensing agreements with pharma companies in Canada, Colombia, Germany, Italy, Thailand, Portugal and US (New York and California).

Opening of US Headquarter

Herbolea inaugurates an R&D and operational headquarter in Los Angeles, California. In the US Herbolea has started collaborating with some of the most important Californian brands in the development of new botanical products based on its patented solventless extraction technology. The US team is led by Stewart Stinson, former VP Sales California for Columbia Care.

ABOUT HERBOLEA BIOTECH SpA

Herbolea is a biotech company envisioning the use of innovative, green technologies to obtain safe, high-quality and low-cost natural products. Herbolea's patented Bio-Refining Platform generates unique products from highly therapeutic potential botanicals in a safe, environmentally friendly, and cost-competitive way. 

The company has signed licensing agreements with pharma companies in Canada, Colombia, Germany, Italy, Zimbabwe, Thailand, NY, Portugal.

Contact info@herbolea.com to learn more.

Herbolea Biotech and Iberfar Announce Strategic Partnership and Commercial Relationship

Iberfar Indústria Farmacêutica S.A ("Iberfar"), a Portuguese Pharmaceutical Group operating a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility near Lisbon, and Herbolea Biotech SpA ("Herbolea"), an Italian biotech company that licenses proprietary technologies for solvent-free extraction of botanicals, are pleased to announce the signing of a Licensing Agreement granting Iberfar the rights to utilize Herbolea's extraction and purification technologies in Portugal.

As part of the agreement, Herbolea commits to deliver Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) compliant equipment to Iberfar, with the capability to process over 400.000 Kg of fresh biomass per year.

By signing this agreement, the parties aim to jointly develop the largest solventless production center in Europe, leveraging the most efficient and competitive extraction technologies, biomass of the highest quality (freshly processed, never dried or frozen), and a facility already authorized for production of a range of CBD and THC products (including under a narcotics license).

In this new partnership Herbolea will supply three core technologies: 

  1. Bio-Herbolysis™ -  a patented and environmentally friendly technology that can extract the cannabis plants' full phyto-complex into a lipid base starting from wet material. This novel process can handle fresh plant material directly, with no need to dry; saving cost, time and space. High temperatures are not utilised during the process, and thus, terpenes are fully retained. 

  2. Hydrocan™ is Herbolea's solventless and environmentally friendly technology to selectively concentrate cannabinoids to over 90% potency while simultaneously remediating THC without crossing the legal 0.2% threshold at any step of the process. 

  3. Distillac™ purification protocol allows to distil volatile compounds (cannabinoid acids, terpenes) out of the Bio-Herbolysis lipid extract at extremely high efficiency (98%). Contrary to popular belief, the team at Herbolea has found that by means of specific processing conditions, it is possible to concentrate cannabinoid acids out of the lipid extract without incurring decarboxylation, therefore preserving the original plant fingerprint unaltered.

"This agreement is an important milestone for Herbolea. We are proud and delighted that a leading European pharmaceutical company with more than a hundred years of history has chosen our platform for cannabis extraction," said Marco Merciai, CEO at Herbolea Biotech. "This is yet another sign that the world is moving in the direction of sustainable manufacturing. By signing this agreement Herbolea confirms its leadership in the European cannabis extraction landscape."

ABOUT HERBOLEA BIOTECH SpA

Herbolea is a biotech company envisioning the use of innovative, green technologies to obtain safe, high-quality and low-cost natural products. Herbolea's patented Bio-Refining Platform generates unique products from highly therapeutic potential botanicals in a safe, environmentally friendly, and cost-competitive way. 

The company has signed licensing agreements with pharma companies in Canada, Colombia, Germany, Italy, Thailand, U.S. and Portugal.

Contact info@herbolea.com to learn more.