Slugs are becoming an ever-greater threat to gardeners with the recent appearance of species such as the Spanish Slug. Zembra (www.zembragroup.com)has developed Zlug^®, a new natural slug barrier to combat the damage caused by slugs in the garden and in crop fields. The effectiveness of the product, which is fully biodegradable, was shown in trials at the John Innes Centre near Norwich. It acts as a barrier to deter slugs and snails from eating plants, and is safe for pets, birds and children. Zlug^® is available in 6L bags from Amazon and soon in other UK retailers.

• Blended mixture of aromatic plants designed as a natural barrier for slugs and snails.
• Contains 100% natural, safe and sustainable ingredients, with no other chemical additives.
• Proven to be effective against the damage caused by slugs and snails through research and development carried out at the John Innes Centre.
• Fully biodegradable, acts as a soil conditioning mulch.
• Friendly to earthworms. Proven by testing at the John Innes Centre, where no adverse effects were seen.
• Shelf life in unopened bags of no less than one year.
• Applied as a top dressing around plants or tubs.
• The photograph below shows how effective Zlug^® can be when snails were presented with a choice of food, with one source protected by Zlug^®.

Zembra Ltd and Aqua Bio Technology ASA of Norway have signed a letter of intent for the commercialization of products from olive oil production. Based on a license agreement, ABT will initiate product development aimed at offering sustainable technology and products to the cosmetics industry.

Zembra has identified several applications for biomass from the production of olive oil. The olive residue is traditionally considered as waste. However, the potential value of the material is now being recognized. Zembra has identified several new applications, such as horticultural soil conditioning, biofuel and olive oil biomass used as a hand cleaning agent. According to the letter of intent, ABT will start a testing procedure in order to establish the potential of Zembra’s substance in skin care products. More specifically, ABT will investigate the exfoliating properties of olive oil biomass, i.e. the ability to remove dead skin cells. If proven successful, olive oil biomass might replace the small plastic beads often used in skin care products today. These beads are not sustainable and represent an increasing environmental problem, as they accumulate in the oceans after being washed off into the sewers. The collaboration with ABT reflects Zembra’s strategy for developing new products by partnership with third parties. Over the coming months, ABT will carry out testing of Zembra’s products in order to establish its safety profile and efficacy in relation to skin care applications. The agreement does not include any initial payments. ABT will carry the costs related to the testing of Zembra’s technology for skin care applications, and Zembra will receive payments when the product has reached commercial use. The letter of intent with Zembra is ABT’s second in-licensing agreement this year.