REGENSOY — Advancing Regenerative Soybean Cultivation Through Inoculant-Compatible Coatings

Soybean is a cornerstone of Europe's protein diversification strategy, yet domestic production remains constrained by a fundamental agronomic barrier: European soils lack native Bradyrhizobium japonicum, the bacterium responsible for the biological nitrogen fixation that makes soy both productive and sustainable. Every soybean crop must therefore be inoculated with live rhizobia before sowing — but current commercial inoculants are fragile. The result is inconsistent nitrogen fixation, unreliable yields, and continued dependence on synthetic nitrogen fertilisers — directly undermining regenerative agriculture goals.

REGENSOY introduces SOYGUARD RHIZO+ (SGR), the first soybean-specific seed coating engineered to preserve Bradyrhizobium japonicum viability throughout industrial seed processing. Built on SeedForward’s patented seedFX® platform, SGR is the only seed treatment currently combining more than 20 natural active ingredients within a single formulation. SGR integrates bioactive complexity with an innovative microbial preservation matrix designed to maintain rhizobial survival during coating, storage, and field application.

The REGENSOY consortium combines expertise across the entire development pipeline — from formulation science to commercial deployment. SeedForward GmbH (Germany), as project coordinator and exploitation lead, is responsible for developing the SGR formulation, scaling up production, and managing regulatory certification and commercialisation activities. The Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB, Germany) provides scientific validation through microbial viability assessments and greenhouse trials, evaluating both rhizobial survival and plant performance under controlled conditions. Saatbau Linz eGen (Austria), one of Austria’s leading seed cooperatives, brings the technology into practice through large-scale field trials across diverse European growing regions. These trials assess agronomic performance, industrial seed-coating compatibility, and generate the data required for EU market approval.

REGENSOY is directly aligned with the EU Green Deal, Farm to Fork Strategy, and EU Protein Plan. By enabling reliable biological nitrogen fixation at scale, the project supports Europe's ambition to reduce synthetic fertiliser use, cut agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, and build a more self-sufficient regional protein supply chain — reducing dependency on imported soy often linked to deforestation and supply chain vulnerability.