Bionema Group

13/09/2026

Sunday reflection

I've seen many good ideas over the years. Some were scientifically brilliant. Some had real commercial potential. Some could have changed an industry.

But an idea, however good, creates no impact on its own.

Impact comes from what happens next: making the first decision when the outcome is still uncertain, testing while others are still discussing, learning when something doesn't work, and coming back the next day to improve it. Then doing that consistently for years.

That's the part people rarely see.

Ex*****on isn't one dramatic moment. It's hundreds of small decisions, uncomfortable conversations, setbacks and corrections that gradually turn an idea into something real.

I've learned this repeatedly in science, business and entrepreneurship:

Good ideas are common. Consistent ex*****on is rare.

That's where impact begins.

What idea have you been sitting on that now needs action?

*****on

12/09/2026

How I made my first million

It was not quick.

It was not easy.

And for many years, it did not even look like I was getting anywhere.

This morning, walking to the office, I was listening to Everyday Millionaires.

One idea stayed with me:

Most wealth is not created by one extraordinary moment.

It is built quietly, through thousands of ordinary decisions made over many years.

That took me back to my own journey.

Before starting Bionema Group Limited, I spent 15 years in academic research.

Then, in 2012, I became an entrepreneur.

I did not suddenly become successful.

I went from researching science to learning how to build a business around science.

There were experiments that failed.

Products that needed reformulating.

Field trials.

Grant applications.

Customers who needed convincing.

Investors who said no.

Months when cash mattered more than ambition.

And years when we were creating valuable science, technology and intellectual property that almost nobody outside the company could see.

Then, in 2021, Syngenta acquired Bionema products and supporting technology.

People can look at a transaction like that and think:

That was the breakthrough.

It wasn't.

The breakthrough was everything that happened before it.

The years of knowledge.

The intellectual property.

The relationships.

The failures.

The persistence.

The decision to continue when stopping would have been much easier.

That is what built my first million.

Not one cheque.

Not one lucky investment.

Not one brilliant idea.

Value compounded.

And that is the part I think we misunderstand when we talk about becoming a millionaire.

You don't start by chasing £1 million.

You start by becoming very good at solving a problem that matters.

Then you create something people value.

You retain ownership where you can.

You reinvest.

You improve.

You survive setbacks.

And you keep doing it long enough for years of work to begin compounding.

There is nothing easy about becoming a millionaire.

But there is also nothing mystical about it.

Create value. Own part of that value. Keep building. Give it time.

Your first million may take 10 years.

It may take 20.

But the important thing is this:

It is often being built long before it becomes visible.

If you are working towards your first million, ask yourself one question:

What are you building today that could compound in value for the next 10 years?

I would be interested to hear your answer.

Minshad Ansari

03/09/2026

Pleased to share that Bionema Group has been named among the nominees for the 2026 Bernard Blum Award by the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA).

Our nomination is for Incapsulex®, Bionema’s advanced microencapsulation platform developed to help protect biological actives and improve their performance under real-world conditions.

Biological crop protection is not only about finding an effective microorganism. Success also depends on how well that biological is protected, formulated, applied and delivered to the target.

That is exactly the challenge Incapsulex® was designed to address.

We are pleased to see this technology recognised alongside other leading innovations in biological crop protection.

Thank you to the Bionema team, our research collaborators and partners who have contributed to its development.

Bionema makes biologicals work.

Minshad Ansari World BioProtection Forum

28/08/2026

Good science is not enough.

In more than 30 years of working in biological crop protection, I have seen excellent laboratory results fail to translate into successful commercial products.

The reason is simple: performing in a Petri dish and performing reliably in a farmer’s field, as economic growers can justify, are two very different challenges.

At Bionema Group Limited, we built our platform around closing that gap: biologicals that perform under variable field conditions, can be scaled commercially, and deliver a credible economic proposition against conventional alternatives.

That approach has earned international commercial validation, including our 2021 agreement with Syngenta, and recognition through two The King's Awards for Enterprise: Innovation in 2024 and Sustainable Development in 2026.

The next challenge for our industry is not to prove that biologics can work in theory.

It is proving they can perform consistently under commercial field conditions, at scale, and at economics that drive adoption.

That is when good science becomes a real product.

Where do you think biologicals still fail most often today: field consistency, formulation, cost, or route to market?

26/08/2026

When most people hear “pesticide”, they picture synthetic chemistry.

But crop protection can also come from living microorganisms already found in nature.

Certain strains of fungi and bacteria can protect crops from damaging pests and diseases.

These microbial biopesticides can help growers reduce their reliance on synthetic pesticides while protecting crop health and productivity.

The challenge is not simply finding a microorganism.

The right strain must be selected, formulated, manufactured, applied, and validated under field conditions. That is where many promising biological products succeed or fail.

At Bionema, we combine microbial science with formulation and delivery technologies to turn promising biology into practical crop protection.

Bionema makes biologicals work.

26/08/2026

If you are a , this article is for you.

https://www.hortweek.com/dismissing-golf-course-management-degrees-spend-morning-greenkeeper/turf/article/1968138?bulletin=breakfast-briefing&utm_medium=EMAIL&utm_campaign=eNews%20Bulletin&utm_source=20260826&utm_content=Horticulture%20Week%20Breakfast%20Briefing%20(344)::&email_hash= Minshad Ansari

Before dismissing golf course management degrees, spend a morning with a greenkeeper - from HortWeek

25/08/2026

𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗯𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁, 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁.

Biological crop protection products, biostimulants and biofertilisers perform fundamentally different jobs.

𝗕𝗶𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 support plant processes such as nutrient-use efficiency, stress tolerance and plant development.

𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗳𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀 use beneficial microorganisms to improve nutrient availability and support plant nutrition.

𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗽-𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 products target specific pests and diseases through biological modes of action.

Confusing these categories leads to unrealistic expectations and poor programme design.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲:

What agronomic problem are we trying to solve?

Once that is defined, the appropriate biology, formulation, application timing and delivery system can be selected.

That is how biologicals should be integrated into modern crop-management programmes.

23/08/2026

"The future of crop protection is not about replacing chemistry with biology. It is about making biology perform with the consistency growers expect."

Biological crop protection has advanced enormously. But strong laboratory biology is not enough.

Growers do not buy scientific potential. They need reliable performance in the field, under variable temperature, UV exposure, moisture, application conditions, and pest pressure.

That is why I believe the next stage of biological crop protection will be driven as much by formulation and delivery technologies as by the microorganisms themselves.

Chemistry has spent decades optimising formulation, stability and application. Biologicals now need the same level of engineering.

At Bionema Group Limitedma, that is what our platform technologies are built for — Incapsulex® for microbial protection and stability, Adhesulex™ for spreading, adhesion and target delivery, BiofilmTech® for root-zone establishment and persistence. The objective isn't to replace chemistry. It's to make biological solutions consistent, scalable, and commercially credible enough for growers to adopt with confidence.

What do you see as the biggest barrier to wider biological adoption: efficacy, consistency, cost, regulation, or grower confidence?

21/08/2026

Golf has an £85 million problem hiding beneath the fairway.

And most golfers will never know what caused it.

ADAS estimated that chafer grubs alone can cost UK golf courses up to £85 million a year through lost income and damage repair.

In a separate survey of 400 golf courses, only 1% reported no damage from leatherjackets and chafer grubs.

Yet when golfers see damaged greens, weakened fairways or turf torn apart by birds searching for larvae, very few will know what is happening underneath.

One of the culprits is the leatherjacket, the larval stage of the crane fly, or daddy-longlegs.

But here is the part that matters.

The damage you see in spring often starts with decisions made months earlier.

Adult crane flies emerge and lay their eggs from late summer into autumn. Within weeks, young larvae begin feeding below the turf.

By the time severe damage becomes visible, the best biological treatment window may already have passed.

After more than 30 years working with biological pest control, I have learnt that this is where biologicals are often misunderstood.

It is rarely enough to ask:

“Which product should I use?”

The better questions are:
When should I intervene?
Where is the pest in its lifecycle?
Can I get the biological agent to the target?
Are the soil temperature and moisture right?

Timing and delivery can determine whether biological control succeeds or disappoints.

That is why late summer and early autumn matter so much for leatherjacket management.

In this short video, I explain what is happening beneath the turf and why acting before visible damage develops can make such a difference.

For golf course managers and greenkeepers, prevention is considerably cheaper than rebuilding damaged turf.

What happens beneath the fairway now can determine what golfers see next spring.