AFT Pharmaceuticals (NZX: AFT, ASX: AFP) today announces it has been notified overnight that the US FDA has approved Maxigesic IV®, the intravenous form of its patented pain relief medicine, for sale in the US, which represents AFT’s second FDA approval within one year.
The medicine is now positioned to go on sale either at the tail end of FY’24 or early in FY’25, an event that will trigger a milestone payment of US$6 million to AFT from the US licensee of the medicine Hikma Pharmaceuticals. AFT is entitled to 65% of this under its profit share arrangements with Hyloris. AFT also qualifies for a US$2.9 million reimbursement of regulatory fees paid to the FDA for Maxigesic IV that it expects to receive in the current financial year.
If the commercial milestone for the launch of Maxigesic IV is triggered within this financial year (FY’24) then this license income will be in addition to the current $22-24m guidance.
AFT Co-Founder and Managing Director Dr Hartley Atkinson says: “We are delighted with the FDA approval of this prescription medicine. We are also proud of the achievement, which is the second approval in one year.
“The US analgesic market is the world’s largest, worth US$6.83 billion in 2023, and is forecast to grow by an estimated 4.89% a year until 2028 . We now have two medicines that can begin to take a share of this market – Maxigesic IV and Maxigesic Rapid®, the rapid dissolving tablet prescription form of the medicine that was approved by the FDA in March 2023.
“The FDA approval of Maxigesic Rapid was the first time the US food and medicine regulator had given the green light for sale of a New Zealand-developed patented medicine based on clinical trial data.,” Dr Atkinson said.
“It is a real credit to the determination, commitment, and capability of the AFT team and our research and development partner, Belgium’s Hyloris Pharmaceuticals. We thank them all for their efforts.”
Maxigesic IV is a novel, unique combination, intravenous formulation for the treatment of post-operative pain that aims to provide an effective alternative to opioid pain relief medicines, offering a significant alternative therapeutic option. Maxigesic Rapid offers similar benefits, which AFT is still working through the best way to approach the US market for this dose form of the medicine.
In the United States chronic opioid usage in patients following surgery averaging around 9%, which is a concern . Drug overdoses involving opioids meanwhile resulted in over 80,000 deaths in the US in 2021 . Patients who experienced an opioid overdose accounted for nearly US$2 billion in annual hospital costs .
Maxigesic was invented by Dr Atkinson and was first introduced in New Zealand in 2009 in tablet form. The medicine has since been licensed in more than 100 countries worldwide and is sold in a variety of dose forms in 62 countries.
https://www.nzx.com/
Says agreements must be future-proofed to allow greater ambition
Washington, D.C., October 16, 2023 – Today, the American Association of the Indo-Pacific (AAIP) released a report at the beginning of what may be the final round of IPEF negotiations in Kuala Lumpur. This report and the negotiations come at a pivotal time, as the IPEF grapples with challenges on multiple fronts—skepticism among members, the evolving nature of U.S. domestic politics, and the continued quest for tangible economic benefits.
Jackson Cox, AAIP Interim CEO, commented, "While we welcome the IPEF, there are several key areas of doubt among IPEF members that must be acknowledged and constructively addressed. These pertain to the very essence of the agreement, the uncertainty generated by U.S. domestic politics, and the aspirations for direct economic gains.
“But it's important to highlight that the current U.S. administration has fortified its commitment to the IPEF. This is a nuanced but significant shift in policy and a point of optimism."
"While the IPEF may not explicitly offer market access," Cox added, "our analysis shows that even modest trade facilitation measures can bring substantial economic benefits. Streamlined customs procedures and electronic document exchanges, for instance, have significantly reduced time and costs for exporters in other contexts."
Cox acknowledged that the key requirements for the IPEF to be considered a great success by private sector organizations like AAIP might not be met. These include commitments to address market access, broader trade liberalization, and chapters on digital trade, technical barriers, health, and intellectual property.
"However," Cox concluded, "it is critical that we can build on what is in the final agreement going into the future. The agreement must be future-proofed to adapt to evolving economic landscapes and be receptive to stakeholder input. AAIP looks forward to being an engaged and constructive stakeholder during IPEF’s implementation period."
Rocket Lab USA, Inc, a global leader in launch and space systems, has acquired SailGP Technologies’ world-class manufacturing complex in Warkworth, New Zealand – bolstering the company’s New Zealand business and retaining more than 90% of SailGP Technologies New Zealand based staff. SailGP Technologies is relocating its operations to the UK to more effectively support the growing league.
SailGP Technologies has been a close partner and supplier to Rocket Lab, providing selected advanced composite materials and components for the Electron rocket. From this week, Rocket Lab – who pioneered the use of carbon composites in space by developing the world’s first carbon composite orbital rocket – will lease SailGP Technologies’ 70,000 square foot development and manufacturing complex in Warkworth.
More than 50 SailGP Technologies New Zealand based team members will remain at the facility and join the Rocket Lab team, supporting a growing production rate for the Electron rocket and the rapid development of Neutron, Rocket Lab’s new 13,000 kg payload class rocket. As part of the transition, Rocket Lab will retain the facilities’ advanced manufacturing equipment including an autoclave, ovens, composite material cutting plotters, CNC metal machining equipment, and large-scale CNC composite machining equipment to support accelerated R&D and production.
Founded in 2001 as Core Builders Composites (CBC), the Warkworth facility has in recent years become heavily focussed on building and maintaining the cutting-edge F50 catamarans used in SailGP’s global racing league – one of the world’s fastest growing sport leagues – which accounts for around 80% of its work.
With 85% of SailGP events being staged in the northern hemisphere – growing from five to thirteen events since its inaugural season, the league will relocate its manufacturing facility to Southampton near SailGP’s global headquarters in London, England. SailGP Technologies will transition its operations to the South Coast of England from November this year, with the aim of being fully operational by April 2024.
Rocket Lab CEO and Founder Peter Beck said: “We’ve had the privilege of working with the SailGP Technologies team for a number of years now supporting advanced carbon composite manufacturing for Electron.
"They’re an absolutely world-class team and we’re excited to welcome them into the Rocket Lab fold. The transition from sea to skies ensures we keep advanced composites talent and expertise in New Zealand, supporting the ongoing growth of the nation’s thriving aerospace industry. We wish SailGP all the very best as they embark on an exciting new chapter in the UK and will be cheering the sport on as it continues to grow globally.”
SailGP CEO Sir Russell Coutts said: “As we continue a steep growth trajectory in markets around the world, we are looking forward to moving our technology and innovation arm closer to our global headquarters, events, teams, and world-class racing, most of which are located in the northern hemisphere.
“The knowledge and commitment of our Warkworth team has been vital to the success of SailGP. With experience honed across more than two decades, they’re among the best in the business and we’re delighted that their skills, expertise and experience can remain in New Zealand for many years to come. We know the team at Rocket Lab will benefit from their skills and the staff are all really excited to be joining Rocket Lab for what promises to be an incredible future ahead.”
The news follows the implementation of a new regional structure in Asia Pacific to enhance the league’s commercial program in New Zealand, Australia and other Asian markets.
This includes the recent appointment of Chae Blewitt as Head of Commercial, APAC. Blewitt – who will be responsible for driving the growth of partnerships across the region – brings with him extensive marketing and business growth experience from working across Spark Sport, Reel Factory, and Warner Bros. Discovery (then Mediaworks) and other properties. After delivering what many regarded as one of SailGP’s best events, the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Christchurch earlier this year, Karl Budge stepped down as APAC Commercial Director at the end of September to pursue other opportunities.
SailGP will continue to maintain a strong presence in New Zealand, including the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix, which alternates between Auckland and Christchurch as part of a four-season partnership with New Zealand Major Events and the respective host cities, as well as the New Zealand SailGP Team, led by co-CEOs Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.
Cropsy Technologies, the New Zealand-based agritech startup, is proud to announce the successful completion of its second funding round, raising an impressive $1.7 million in an extended and over-subscribed capital raise. This achievement marks a significant milestone for the company and positions it for global expansion, thanks to the backing of prominent U.S. investor Seraph Group.
The trailblazing company is poised to reshape the future of fruit growing with its ground-breaking crop monitoring technology. Their cutting-edge solution combines automated, continuous, and GPS-tracked high-definition image capture with AI-enabled software.
Each Cropsy scanner analyses over 30,000 vines per day in real-time, integrating with growers existing tractors to seamlessly profile critical aspects of a vineyard – leaves, shoots, fruits, canes, and trunks – with no extra labour. Sunlight, shadows, and reflections are no match for Cropsy’s scanner, ensuring accurate details like colours and textures are preserved, regardless of the time of day or weather conditions.
Cropsy’s transformative technology is currently crafted specifically for vineyards, providing a multitude of benefits with no additional effort from the grower; localising disease presence in its earliest stages, tracking missing and dead vines, analysing pruning status, counting buds, inflorescences, and bunches for yield estimation – all on a per-vine level, tracking each plant down to the centimetre. The focus on global enterprise winegrowers means the team has a deep understanding of problems and challenges at scale, keeping them ahead of the competition.Cropsy's capital raise not only received continued support from existing investors such as Angel Investors Marlborough, NZGCP, Icehouse Ventures, and K1W1 but also attracted its first U.S. investor, Seraph Group – a milestone for the company.
Seraph Group, founded in 2003 in San Francisco and Atlanta, is an American venture capital firm known for its unique network of 370+ accomplished investors who support entrepreneurs. Seraph Group’s Founder and CEO, Tuff Yen, expressed his enthusiasm for Cropsy, stating, “they apply their technology to enhance the bottom line for growers in viticulture using machine vision and intelligent software, leading the way to a new era of improved productivity while reducing costs. We invested because this is the way of the future, and the founding team exhibits the commitment to see this through.”
The round was so successful that it extended beyond its original oversubscription limit, from $1.5 million to $1.7 million, to accommodate the interests of new investors, even amid global capital market uncertainties.
Lead investor, Tracy Atkin, of Angel Investors Marlborough says it has been an extremely tough year for start-ups raising in a post-pandemic and recessionary environment. “For Cropsy to not only reach their target but exceed it is a testament to their team and technology. It is a fantastic achievement and one I was proud to support as lead investor for their second round on behalf of Angel Investors Marlborough.”
“2023 has shaped up to be a momentous year for us,” says CEO Ali Alomari. “We’ve reached our first international customers in the U.S. and France, and the support of Seraph Group aligns perfectly with our attention on the U.S. as a key market.” Earlier in 2022, Ali mentioned that Cropsy’s internal milestone is to scan 10 million vines by the end of 2023. “We’ve passed 6 million new vines right now, and at this rate, we’ll reach our target of 10 million new vines by the end of this year.”
With 30 scanners deployed, and more in the pipeline, Cropsy is set on a clear path forward. COO Leila Deljkovic emphasised the company’s focus is all on expanding geographies and scaling the technology. New Zealand is a character-building place to grow deep tech companies like Cropsy. “We’re extremely efficient simply because of where we’re based. It’s a distinct advantage.”
Founded by four young engineers fresh out of university in 2019, Ali (26), Leila (26), Rory (26), Winston (24), Cropsy Technologies has grown to ten full-time staff and is actively recruiting brilliant talent who thrive on solving challenging problems in hardware, big data, AI, and computer vision with a multi-disciplinary engineering team.
“Working at Cropsy has provided some of the most challenging yet interesting problems I have gotten to work on. Being on the bleeding edge of technology allows us to push the envelope, and keep our skills top-notch,” says Cropsy’s senior software engineer Cedric Bournville. Source: https://www.scoop.co.nz/
Commercialisation of biographite planned in Europe and the US as CarbonScape announces USD18m investment.
New Zealand-based battery material innovator CarbonScape to commercialise production of biographite in Europe and the US, enabling cleaner lithium-ion batteries for EVs and grid-scale energy storage.
Graphite is up to 50% of the weight of a lithium-ion battery, yet expected global demand far outstrips supply, with a forecast deficit of 777,000 tonnes per annum by 2030.
Biographite, produced from forestry and timber industry by-products, is a sustainable alternative for battery supply chains currently dependent on petroleum-based or mined graphite.
Biographite, produced locally, provides security of supply for European and US based battery manufacturers in the face of increasing supply chain instability, while also on-shoring production of a critical material to meet rapidly growing demand.
Investment round led by Stora Enso Oyj, joined by Amperex Technology Ltd (ATL) and other partners, bringing expertise from all sides of the supply chain to accelerate growth and speed to market.
19 September, London, CarbonScape, the first-to-market producer of biographite - a carbon-negative alternative to the critical material for lithium-ion batteries - today announces new investment of USD 18m led by Stora Enso, and joined by ATL and other strategic partners. The investment will support the commercialisation of biographite, and further plans to establish production in Europe and the US.
Biographite will provide a much-needed alternative for EV and grid-scale battery supply chains, by sustainably creating a critical raw material that currently depends on costly and high-emission production processes. CarbonScape’s patented process is the result of seven years of development and testing and uses timber and forestry industry by-products, such as wood chips. It is a sustainable alternative to synthetic (petroleum based) and natural (mined) graphite, the raw material which fills the largest portion of a lithium-ion battery. The result is a cleaner, competitive and more secure raw material for the global market.
Graphite deficit threatens global battery market growth
Graphite makes up to 50 per cent of the weight of a lithium-ion battery and, as a result, is an essential element in the shift to clean energy and transport, with over half of global demand for graphite now coming from the battery sector. Graphite production is also one of the largest CO2 emitters in the battery raw materials supply chain and represents a significant proportion of the cost of a battery. Adding to the problem, today’s battery supply chains are long and complicated, with petroleum-based and mined materials crossing the globe from source, through processing to battery assembly, to reach end consumers.
With countries increasingly competing for raw materials, securing supplies of graphite is key to ramping up production of EVs and renewable energy systems - as reflected in the recent EU Critical Raw Materials Act and US Final Critical Materials List. Recent analysis predicts a global supply deficit of 777,000 tonnes by 2030, with EV sales alone due to more than triple by this date.
Ivan Williams, CEO of CarbonScape, said:
“CarbonScape’s biographite enables the establishment of localised battery supply chains from the ground up. If we are to truly move away from fossil carbon and power our economies through mass electrification, we urgently need sustainable alternatives like biographite to scale quickly.” “This investment represents a strong statement of support for sustainable sourcing of battery materials for global decarbonisation. With these partnerships, CarbonScape is another step closer to bringing biographite to market on a commercial scale.”
“CarbonScape’s biographite enables the establishment of localised battery supply chains from the ground up. If we are to truly move away from fossil carbon and power our economies through mass electrification, we urgently need sustainable alternatives like biographite to scale quickly.”
“This investment represents a strong statement of support for sustainable sourcing of battery materials for global decarbonisation. With these partnerships, CarbonScape is another step closer to bringing biographite to market on a commercial scale.”
A carbon negative solution to scale domestic battery production
Biographite has a carbon negative footprint, saving up to 30 tonnes of CO2 emissions per tonne of material compared to synthetic or mined graphite. Using biographite will enable battery manufacturers to cut the carbon footprint of each battery by almost a third (30 per cent), potentially reducing sector emissions by more than 86 million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030.
To meet the demand for batteries with synthetic graphite would require more than tripling existing production capacity, using fossil fuel feedstocks and high-emission processes. To use mined graphite would require almost 100 new mines, each taking around 10 years or more to come online and costing hundreds of millions of dollars, with enormous social and environmental costs.
By contrast, using less than five per cent of the forestry industry by-products generated annually in Europe and North America, CarbonScape’s cleaner, faster process could produce enough biographite to meet half the total global projected graphite demand for EV and grid-scale batteries by 2030.
Crucially, biographite production can be localised to EV and battery manufacturing hubs, vertically-integrating domestic and regional supply chains. This reduces geopolitical risk as countries compete for minerals and as mineral producers seek a greater share of the value, as seen recently in Chile, which plans to nationalise the lithium industry, and in Indonesia, which has banned exports of nickel ore in an attempt to build domestic industry.
Commercialising biographite production
The new investment will support CarbonScape to scale the business and further develop plans for production facilities in Europe and the US. The strategic partnerships with investors Stora Enso, a leading provider of renewable products in biomaterials, packaging, and wooden construction and one of the largest private forest owners in the world; and ATL, a global lithium-ion battery innovator, will bring expertise from all sides of the supply chain, significantly accelerating the company’s growth and biographite’s speed to market.
Juuso Konttinen, Senior Vice President, Biomaterials Growth Businesses at Stora Enso, said:
“Partnering with CarbonScape marks another step on our journey to serve the fast-growing battery market with sustainable, local materials made from trees. With this partnership, we are exploring a sustainable alternative for critical battery materials, creating a positive impact on society.”
Joe Kit Chu Lam, ATL Executive Vice President, said:
“As a premier global innovative technology corporation, our central vision is to contribute to the green energy revolution for the future.” “Demand for low cost and low emission solutions is increasing and it is our objective to ensure we remain a leader in the market by adopting innovative solutions. Our partnership with CarbonScape allows us to continue to create the technology of the future and brings us one step closer to a net zero economy.”
“As a premier global innovative technology corporation, our central vision is to contribute to the green energy revolution for the future.”
“Demand for low cost and low emission solutions is increasing and it is our objective to ensure we remain a leader in the market by adopting innovative solutions. Our partnership with CarbonScape allows us to continue to create the technology of the future and brings us one step closer to a net zero economy.”
New Zealand-based deep tech biomaterials company CarbonScape began development of biographite in 2016, with an aim to replace fossil carbons with a sustainable alternative. Its pilot facility in Marlborough produces biographite for customer testing and validation, while providing the necessary scale-up data for global commercialisation.
About Stora Enso
Part of the global bioeconomy, Stora Enso is a leading provider of renewable products in packaging, biomaterials and wooden construction, and one of the largest private forest owners in the world. It believes that everything that is made from fossil-based materials today can be made from a tree tomorrow. Stora Enso has approximately 21,000 employees and sales in 2022 were EUR 11.7 billion. Stora Enso shares are listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy (STEAV, STERV) and Nasdaq Stockholm AB (STE A, STE R). In addition, the shares are traded in the USA as ADRs (SEOAY).
About ATL
Amperex Technology Limited (ATL) is a global lithium-ion battery producer and innovator. Headquartered in Hong Kong, it provides high quality rechargeable lithium-ion battery cells, packs and system integration solutions, providing services and products across the consumer electronics industry. It is committed to innovating to power our lives.
Source: https://www.carbonscape.com/
Meanwhile, on the U.S. west coast, Delta’s nonstop, daily flight from LAX to Auckland, New Zealand, which begins Oct. 28, 2023, will extend to year-round service, operating daily from November to March and three times weekly from April to October. Delta will also increase service from LAX to Sydney, Australia, to twice-daily beginning this December. Source: https://news.delta.com/
As part of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) initiative led by the United States of America, 14 Indo-Pacific partners have agreed on a joint approach to regional supply chains.
Substantial conclusion of the IPEF Supply Chain Agreement was announced on 27 May 2023, and the text subsequently went through a legal verification process. Once signed, the IPEF Parties can complete the approval procedures necessary for ratification and entry into force of the Agreement.
IPEF is a novel type of initiative that will provide new channels of collaboration amongst regional countries. Members of IPEF are Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, the United States of America, and Vietnam. Together the 14 represent 40% of world GDP.
Under the Supply Chain Agreement IPEF partners undertake to:
The text of the Agreement is available to read and download here [PDF, 318 KB]
Source: www.mfat.govt.nz
AgriZeroNZ, a joint venture of major New Zealand agribusiness companies and the government, is the lead investor in a US start-up developing probiotics and natural enzymes that reduces methane while improving cow health.
The JV has invested $4.1 million (NZD) into Hoofprint Biome, in Raleigh, North Carolina, in its pre-seed funding round (total USD$3.75M) to support development of its probiotic into animal trial proof-of-concept stage.
Good Growth Capital and Ponderosa Ventures (member of Galvanize Climate Solutions) have also invested in the round.
Wayne McNee executive director of AgriZeroNZ, says the investment allows the JV to be involved from an early stage and drive development towards a solution for New Zealand farmers.
“Hoofprint is developing novel technology with potential to be a real breakthrough to help meet our country’s climate goals. We’re really pleased to be backing Hoofprint as the lead investor, and secure this opportunity for New Zealand farmers so they can be at the forefront of its future success,” Wayne McNee said.
Hoofprint Biome, a spin-out of NC State University, was founded by Dr. Kathryn Polkoff and Dr. Scott Collins. As two biotech entrepreneurs with backgrounds in animal agriculture, they saw the unique potential for microbiome engineering to benefit ruminant agriculture and tackle the climate crisis.
The pair had discovered enzymes that naturally reduce rumen methane emissions, and delivery of these patent-pending enzymes with probiotics will result in long-lasting efficacy.
Ingested as a supplement in a small dose, the Hoofprint probiotic aims to reduce enteric methane emissions by over 80 per cent while simultaneously increasing milk and meat yield by over 5 per cent.
Dr Polkoff, co-founder and CEO, said they are excited to develop the solution for Kiwi farmers.
“We’re bringing next-gen probiotics to ruminant agriculture in our mission to cut methane emissions while improving animal health and profitability. This investment offers a unique opportunity for Hoofprint to partner with New Zealand farmers, who have been leaders in sustainable agriculture, and to tackle the climate crisis together,” Dr Polkoff said.
AgriZeroNZ was established in February to accelerate the development of tools and technology to help farmers rapidly reduce their emissions, while maintaining farm productivity and profitability, to support New Zealand’s climate goals and meet increasing demands from global customers.
“New Zealand farmers are the most efficient in the world but the importance of reducing agricultural emissions cannot be understated and technology like this needs to be part of the solution.,” McNee said.
“We’re looking all over the world for opportunities that will work on New Zealand farms, we’re moving fast to reflect the mandate for urgent action from our shareholders, and we’re taking calculated risks to significantly accelerate efforts made by Kiwi farmers to date.”
McNee says the investment aligns with the JV’s ambition to ensure all farmers in Aotearoa have equitable access to affordable, effective solutions to reduce emissions, with a goal of supporting a 30% reduction by 2030 and enabling development and adoption of solutions to drive towards ‘near zero’ by 2040.
“Farmers will need at least two or three proven tools and technologies in widespread use by 2030 to meet this goal so that’s what we’re working to deliver.
“We’ve been tasked with making some bold investment decisions to support the continued success of New Zealand agriculture. The Hoofprint probiotic is in early stages but if development continues to progress we look forward to supporting it through New Zealand’s regulatory process and getting it into farmers’ hands,” he said.
This is AgriZeroNZ’s fourth investment since being established in February. The JV continues to welcome interest from potential new shareholders and strategic partners, to extend the reach of the JV and grow the fund. The JV expects to confirm further investments soon.
www.agrizero.nz
Future Food Aotearoa (FFA) – a founders movement driving advancement in the New Zealand and Pacific Rim foodtech ecosystem – has announced a milestone partnership with San Francisco-based innovation platform MISTA.
Developed by Givaudan, the world’s largest company in the flavour and fragrance industries, the platform supports start-ups – including those in the food tech industry – to optimise ideas, products, people, and investments. The aim of FFA’s global node partnership with MISTA is to help Aotearoa NZ foodtech founders grow beyond their domestic market. Discussing the state of investment and innovation in the NZ plant-based sector, FFA Executive Director Katy Bluett said that they are seeing growing support from government, industry, and angel investors for early stage founders with a good value proposition.
Bluett added that there is an emerging group of alt protein companies across NZ with both B2C and B2B business models, ranging from grocery focused plant-based butters, to microalgae-derived protein ingredients, to molecular-farmed protein and precision-fermented dairy ingredients. “Future Food Aotearoa is working hard to share and grow awareness of these companies, who often struggle to build the same level of profile as our large food industry giants. Where we see a gap is in the support for scaling companies, both in terms of experience, funding and facilities,” Bluett told Future Alternative.
Bluett also spoke about the reasoning behind targeting MISTA for cooperation.
“San Francisco resonated for a number of reasons. We then did due diligence with MISTA and felt their values and vision resonated strongly with Future Food Aotearoa and so we explored the relationship further. We are excited about where this partnership will lead in the coming year,” Bluett said. Regarding the cooperation’s anticipated benefits to NZ food tech startups, FFA is optimistic about the results of enabling NZ foodtech start-ups to engage with other international founders and companies in MISTA’s network. “The benefit of meeting people in person and having experienced heads to bounce ideas off will be invaluable, especially as NZ companies get back out into the world having been contained here over the pandemic. And of course access to technical expertise and the pilot facilities will be super valuable,” Alex Worker, FFA Chair and Country Manager for NZ and South Pacific, Impossible Foods, told Future Alternative.
Additional members of the FFA Steering Committee also shared their hopes for the MISTA partnership. “We’re excited to be exploring how to scale our unique IP and microalgae technology from Aotearoa New Zealand for global nutrition needs,” said Toby Lane, CEO and co-founder of NewFish, a biotechnology nutrition company utilising microalgae.
“Ārepa has a world-class portfolio of delicious technology with global ambitions. We are building for scale,” said Angus Brown, co-founder of plant-based nutrition brand, Ārepa.
“I see an opportunity for New Zealand businesses to be purpose-driven and to have a positive impact on people and on the environment,” said Florence Van Dyke, co-founder of Chia Sisters.
Source: https://futurealternative.com.au/
Rocket Lab, a global leader in launch services and space systems, today announced it has signed a double-launch deal with NASA to deliver the Agency’s climate change research-focused mission, PREFIRE, to low Earth orbit in 2024.
The two dedicated missions on Electron will deploy one small satellite each to a 525km circular orbit from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 in New Zealand from May 2024. The PREFIRE mission has specific LTAN (Local Time of the Ascending Node) requirements and a need for the second satellite to be deployed to space shortly after the first, which is made possible by Electron’s unique ability to deploy dedicated small satellite missions on highly responsive timelines. The launches will be the 7th and 8th missions Rocket Lab has launched for NASA since 2018.
NASA's PREFIRE (Polar Radiant Energy in the Far-InfraRed Experiment) mission will help close a gap in understanding of how much of Earth’s heat is lost to space, especially from the Arctic and Antarctica. Analysis of PREFIRE’s measurements will inform climate and ice models, providing better projections of how a warming world will affect sea ice loss, ice sheet melt, and sea level rise. Improving climate models can ultimately help to provide more accurate projections on the impacts of storm severity and frequency, as well as coastal erosion and flooding. PREFIRE consists of two, 6U CubeSats with a baseline mission length of 10 months.
Rocket Lab founder and CEO, Peter Beck, said: “Missions like these are core to the whole reason why Rocket Lab was founded in the first place – to open up access to space to improve life on Earth – and climate change is a hugely urgent cause for us all. It’s a privilege to be able to support this important mission and an honor to be a continued trusted launch provider for small satellite missions with big impact.”
The PREFIRE mission was awarded to Rocket Lab through NASA’s Venture-class Acquisition of Dedicated and Rideshare (VADR) program, a $300 million dollar five-year contracting vehicle for placing NASA’s science and technology payloads on U.S. commercial launchers.
PREFIRE joins a long list of NASA missions awarded to Rocket Lab, including the CAPSTONE mission to the Moon on Rocket Lab’s Electron launch vehicle and Lunar Photon satellite bus, the back-to-back launches in May 2023 of the TROPICS satellites for NASA’s hurricane monitoring mission, and the NASA Starling mission launched last month on Rocket Lab’s most recent Electron recovery launch.
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