The quest for effective pesticides free of chemical nasties has been going for years. Now TyraTech, an American research company which floated on AIM this month, believes it has the answer.

The quest for effective pesticides free of chemical nasties has been going for years. Now TyraTech, an American research company which floated on AIM this month, believes it has the answer.

It has identified three chemoreceptors found on all invertebrates – but not in mammals. A proprietary blend of plant oils attacks those receptors, repelling or killing insects, but leaving mammals unharmed.

In fact, says TyraTech CEO Doug Armstrong, its cocktail of essential oils is safe enough to drink. This opens up opportunities for its use against intestinal parasites in developing regions. TyraTech has already formed a strategic partnership with Kraft Foods, with a view to developing edible products that will provide lasting protection against infection.

‘The major players like Kraft all knew that everyone’s tried to do this before, so they were pretty sceptical when we first approached them,’ Armstrong recalls. ‘We’ve watched that scepticism vanish and now everyone wants a piece of the pie.’