THE KAPSOL™ PLATFORM STORY

Refined Over 20 Years of Development

Germination of an Idea

EXPERIENCE AND OPPORTUNITY

Daniel Cox is the inventor of the Klondike KAPSOL™ Platform. The idea came to him 20 years ago while trying to help his grandparents farm. With their advanced age, they found sowing seeds to be increasingly difficult. The labor involved with digging holes, planting seeds, and amending the soil became too physically taxing. During this time, Cox had personal friends who were sickened by handling toxic agricultural materials used for fertilization and pest control.

The combination of these two factors led Cox to identify a few specific problems occurring in the agricultural industry. These problems include the widespread use of chemicals along the surface of the soil, the inability to control chemical distribution to each plant (especially when using broadcast application methods) and the extensive labor associated with taking a plant from seed to harvested product.

THE SEED OF TOMORROW

Daniel initially began to place seed within capsules to make sowing easier, with the goal being “dig free” planting of capsules. As the idea developed, Daniel realized the seed capsule platform could additionally accommodate the necessary chemicals used in agriculture while avoiding skin contact.

He further understood that he could regulate the amount of chemicals allotted to each seed with incredible accuracy and began to develop a platform where the entire process of seed fertilization, pest control, and maintenance could be controlled under the ground.

The KAPSOL™ Platform Team

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DANIEL COX

KAPSOL™ Inventor

Daniel invented the patented KAPSOL™ Platform over 20 years ago. He continues to add to our patent portfolio with numerous supplementary genius innovations.

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BRANT TOUCHETTE

Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies, Elon University

Brant is Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies at Elon University. He holds a Ph.D. in Botany with a minor in plant Physiology from North Carolina State University, an M.S. in OceanScience from Nova Southeastern University, and a B.A. in Biology from the University of Delaware. Previously, Brant has served as Chairman of the Environmental Studies Department at Elon University and Visiting Scholar at Duke University and North Carolina State University. He has over 50 publications.

Neil Goodman — Managing Partner
Keith Schmader — General Manager
Marc Weinstein — Patent Attorney (in house)

A Word from Our Scientist

The Klondike platform is a comparatively new and developing technology in seed enhancement that involves encapsulation with gelatin or hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose capsules. These pharmaceutical-based delivery systems can range in size from 0.2 mL (size-4) to 1.4 mL (size-000) and can be viewed as a form of seed-coat technology (such as encrusting, film coating, and pelleting). Encapsulation offers similar benefits as other seed coating technologies including uniformity with reduced friction that enhances flow characteristics in mechanical planters, inclusion of plant protectants and other beneficial adjuvants, and minimizing exposure of workers to agrochemicals. More importantly, unlike other coatings, seed encapsulation provides often needed spatial separation between seeds and chemical additives, thereby lowering phytotoxic or inhibitory responses observed in seeds and developing plants. Encapsulation does not involve liquid/moist material that can damage seeds during application, and gelatin-based capsules have been shown to enhance plant growth because it functions as an effective biostimulant. Furthermore, seed encapsulation offers greater volumes, compared to other seed coating technologies, thus allowing for the inclusion of multiple plant-benefitting components that can be quickly optimized to meet the specific needs of individual growers. To better understand how to exploit this technology, our research has focused on a number of applied studies (some completed and others still in on-going) including the following:

  • Delivery of plant-growth regulators, such as gibberellins, to promote and enhance seed germination.

  • Inclusion of controlled-released fertilizers to precisely apply nutrients to field crops. In one study we observed a two-fold increase in fruit production for tomatoes, while reducing overall chemical fertilizer usage by more than 90%.

  • Use of controlled-released fertilizers to reduce flowering and fruit induction times for greenhouse grown tomatoes and peppers.

  • Application of hydrogels to extend plant tolerance when grown in low soil moisture conditions.

  • Delivery of agrochemicals, including systemic fungicides and nematicides, to minimize plant disease in greenhouse and field crops.

  • Application of soil microbes such as fungi (e.g., Trichoderma sp.) and beneficial soil bacteria to enhance plant growth in tomato and lettuce.

  • Delivery of plant extracts (e.g., pyrethrin) to repel insects such a mole crickets in pine nurseries.

We recognize that we have only scratched the surface of the many possibilities of employing this technology as a delivery system for seed enhancements and believe that combinations of materials (including those depicted above) can provide cumulative benefits to seeds and developing plants. We have also shown that, with little modification, these capsules can be easily planted using conventional/ mechanical seed planters, and because of the capsules uniformity we were able to develop planters that allow for rapid and easy sowing in plant trays commonly used in greenhouses. We hope this offers you some insights into the benefits and potential use of seed encapsulation currently being developed. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to know more about this newly emerging technology.

BRANT W. TOUCHETTE, PH.D.

Professor of Biology and Environmental Science Elon University
Elon University,
Elon, NC

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KAPSOL™
Platform Timeline

MID 1990s

Daniel begins experimenting with encapsulating seeds.

2004

Filed for patents

2005

Testing begins with students at Elon Univeristy

2014

Patent #US8683742B1 granted

2018

Retail launch at Lowes and Home Depot

2019

Begin mass production

2021

Tomato studies at Elon University conducted under Brant Touchette 

2022

Numerous studies in progress researching KAPSOL™ capabilities

Our body of research is always growing.

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© 2022 Klondike Ag. All Rights Reserved

Phone   330.564.9875
Office   580 Kennedy Road Akron, OH 44305
Email   [email protected]

PATENT INFORMATION

KAPSOL™ is the exclusive Intellectual Property of Klondike Agricultural Products and protected under patents #US8683742B1, #US10524427B2

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