Tropic raises $105M to scale gene-edited bananas and deploy TR4-resistant varieties from 2027

UK-based gene-editing company Tropic closed an oversubscribed $105 million Series C on March 12, co-led by Forbion through its Bioeconomy Fund and Corteva via its Corteva Catalyst investment platform — the largest raise in the company’s history and a signal of accelerating investor confidence in precision-bred tropical crops.

The round drew additional participation from Just Climate, IQ Capital, ABN Amro, and Invest International, alongside existing investors including Temasek, Five Seasons Ventures, Sucden Ventures, Genoa Ventures, and Polaris Partners. Total capital raised by Tropic now stands at approximately $178.5 million.

Tropic launched two commercial banana varieties in 2025 — a non-browning banana named one of TIME Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2025, and an extended shelf-life variety that adds 12 days of green life, reducing transportation waste by up to 50%. The company said demand for both products already outstrips supply, with retail availability across the U.S. and Canada planned for 2026.

The primary deployment of Series C capital is accelerating Tropic’s work against Panama disease (TR4) — the most pressing threat facing the global banana industry. TR4 is a soil-borne fungal pathogen present in more than 20 countries that has no known chemical cure and represents an existential risk to the Cavendish variety that accounts for the bulk of the $25 billion global banana export market. Tropic shipped plants to establish a TR4-resistant mother plantation in 2025, with commercial deployment of disease-resistant varieties targeted for 2027.

Tropic’s technology is classified as non-GMO in its key markets because it makes targeted edits to existing banana DNA without introducing genetic material from another organism. Regulatory approvals are in place in the Philippines, Colombia, Honduras, the United States, and Canada. The company is also expanding its rice portfolio and advancing entry into additional climate-resilient crops.