Agricultural products specialist Wilbur-Ellis, has joined forces with Talam Biotech, a biological technologies start-up, to develop a novel approach to reducing heavy metal contamination in food.

Talam Biotech says it is “unlocking the hidden potential of soil” to reduce toxicity from heavy metals through novel microbial solutions, derived from natural sources, which inhibit the bioavailability and uptake of heavy metals to plants. 

The company specializes in the power of microbes and their capacity to reduce contaminants and remediate soil pollutants.

Market development agreement

Reduced uptake by plants means fewer contaminants in grains, vegetables, and fruits.

“The issue of heavy metals in agricultural lands is widespread in the US, naturally and as a consequence of anthropogenic activities such as agricultural and industrial pollution. once these toxic elements are present in agricultural soils, they find their way to our food,” Talam Biotech CEO John Chrosniak tells Food Ingredients First.

“Wilbur-Ellis, as a leading provider of innovative solutions to farmers across the US, is tuned in on farmers’ concerns, and while there are many competing priorities for US farmers, from labor challenges to tariffs, the challenge of heavy metals is a growing concern.”

“Meanwhile, Talam identified the opportunity of developing solutions for this issue since there are limited, cost-effective alternatives available to farmers. With this partnership, Wilbur-Ellis and Talam seek to further accelerate Talam’s development of this critical technology.”

“Reducing exposure to heavy metals in food demands a system-wide approach that starts at the farm.” 

Talam anticipates the commercial launch of a wheat product produced with its process in 2027. Additional products for vegetables, grains, and root crops will follow.

“In 2024, the company demonstrated a significant reduction of up to 50% in cadmium in spring wheat grain in Europe. In 2025 we are expanding the testing of our lead candidates in preparation for larger scale, pre-commercial trials in 2026 and 2027. In addition, we are expanding our work to wheat in the US through this collaboration with Wilbur-Ellis.” 

Chrosniak explains that Talam is also developing products for spinach-cadmium, rice-arsenic, and tubers-cadmium, which are at earlier development stages. “Our intent is to prioritize our efforts on these crops wher we can have the biggest impact on reducing food-based exposure to heavy metals.”