Oxitec successfully launches second of Next-Generation Mosquito Technology in Brazil

Oxitec Ltd, the leading developer of insect-based biological solutions to control pests that transmit disease, destroy crops, and harm livestock, today announced the launch of the second season of scale-up deployments of its next-generation Friendly™ Aedes aegypti.

Following a season of successful validation of innovative manufacturing and deployment systems, this season offers the opportunity to deploy new product innovations at a larger scale to combat the disease-spreading Aedes aegypti mosquito in disease-impacted global communities.

Since 2018, Oxitec and the city of Indaiatuba have been working in close partnership on the control of Aedes aegypti – which spreads dengue, chikungunya, Zika and other viral diseases – in the city, with the safe and sustainable Friendly™ Aedes aegypti integrated into the municipal mosquito control program.

The partnership team will use this second season to maximize product cost-effectiveness at scale through optimization of distribution and deployment pathways, validation of new product form factors incorporating new materials, and incorporation of new features into the FriendlyOS digital platform.

This new scale-up season with the City of Indaiatuba coincides with the commercial expansion of Friendly™ Aedes aegypti, delivered as an easy-to-use, just-add-water product to households, businesses and cities across all Brazilian states, served by licensed distributors nationwide.

Oxitec’s just-add-water product yields non-biting Friendly™ male mosquitoes over time, which mate with invasive, biting Aedes aegypti females.

Their female offspring cannot survive, which means fewer biting female mosquitoes in the following generations. This Friendly™ product technology controls the pest mosquito without harming beneficial species like bees and butterflies.

The Friendly™ Aedes aegypti mosquito control product is now available nationwide across Brazil. To deliver national impact, Oxitec has partnered with leading pest control companies that will distribute and deploy the product in every state in Brazil.

Leading companies across sectors have placed orders for the Friendly™ Aedes to protect their employees, customers and local communities. For Grey Frandsen, CEO of Oxitec, This second scale-up season comes at the perfect time.

As we meet growing customer demand across Brazil, validation of next generation product features and processes, and pressure-testing them in large-scale pilots in dengue-affected communities in the city of Indaiatuba.

This offers the ideal platform from which to launch efforts to protect communities around the world threatened by the invasive Aedes aegypti mosquito.

Thanks to partnerships with Indaiatuba and Wellcome, this new scale-up season will bring us closer to delivering global impact against disease-spreading pests where it’s needed the most.

This is a wonderful example of what excellent public-private-non-profit partnerships can deliver in the face of growing public health challenges due to climate change.

Natalia Ferreira, Oxitec Brazil’s director, added that “We’re honored to make our just-add-water Friendly™ Aedes aegypti product available to communities committed to combating the growing threat of dengue mosquito in Brazil in a safe and sustainable way.

Thanks to our world-class team and the pioneering city of Indaiatuba, the success of our deployments here over multiple seasons has accelerated our mission to protect dengue-threatened households, cities, and businesses across Brazil and beyond.

Oxitec / ABC Flash Point Bio-Technology News 2023.