F1 Seed has been acquired by Wild Bioscience for an undisclosed sum, creating a British independent precision-breeding wheat business.
F1 Seed was founded in 2014. It has six varieties available and another ten being trialled.
Research-led breeding at commercial scale
Wild Bioscience was founded by University of Oxford researchers and is developing more resilient crops using artificial intelligence and precision breeding. The business received £45 million in funding last year.
It plans to begin producing conventional wheat varieties for UK farmers next year, and aims to begin field trials of its first precision-bred lines by 2028. Dr Ross Hendron is co-founder and chief executive; Bill Angus is founder and director of F1 Seed.
Why the structure matters
Acquiring an established breeder gives a research-led company access to germplasm, trialling infrastructure and route to market — assets that are difficult and slow to build from a standing start.
That combination of scientific platform and operating business is increasingly common in UK AgriTech, and mirrors the AI-enabled discovery approach taken by fellow Oxford company Moa Technology.
An investment context
For allocators, precision breeding sits alongside food security, climate resilience and agricultural real assets. Timelines are governed by regulation and field trial cycles rather than product release schedules, which suits patient capital.
UKFOS Editorial · 11 August 2026