Abundant Produce [ASX:ABT], the Australian agribusiness specialised in the development of hybrid vegetable seeds, is now looking at acquisitions following its debut on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) in April, said Chief Executive Officer Tony Crimmins.

 

“We are looking at acquisitions, and there’s two or three that we’ve identified. We are looking at Australia mainly because that’s closest to home, and New Zealand, but we’re also interested in US and European companies” Crimmins said.

 

The ideal target for Abundant Produce would be a small company producing different types of seeds. It is only interested in vegetable seed companies and would not pursue targets focusing on florals.

 

Abundant Produce began breeding seeds for tomato and cucumber varieties and is working on producing zucchinis, capsicums and eggplants.

 

The company raised AUD 3.5m through its IPO to commercialise technology and fund growth. As a public company Abundant Produce has now more funding opportunities, he said.

 

Upon listing the company’s market cap was around AUD 9m and it has since grown to the current AUD 37.2m.

 

Meanwhile, Abundant Produce should be closing its first partnership with an international seed company in a couple of months, he said.

 

In May, Abundant Produce announced its intention to pursue a formal distribution agreements in Europe, the Middle East and the US. Crimmins confirmed that Abundant Produce is already engaging with an undisclosed counterpart which is currently running trials on the Australian company’s seeds before commencing commercialisation. It is a global player with distribution in Europe, the Middle East, US and Africa, he added.

 

Based in Cobbitty, Southwest of Sydney, Abundant Produce has been working in partnership with the University of Sydney’s Plant Breeding Institute for the past five years. It breeds hybrid greenhouse vegetables that, according to the company’s website, can ensure better yields, disease resistance, temperature tolerance and better taste than current commercial varieties.

 

According to a company presentation, the global market for fruit and vegetable seeds was worth USD 6.3bn in 2012, and it is projected to exceed USD 12.9bn by 2018, growing at about 12.8% annual rate.