Pioneering Biological Solutions for a More Sustainable World

Since she was a child, Pam Marrone has believed that nature held secrets that could lead to better ways to manage pests. The NC State University alumna’s efforts to unlock those secrets recently earned her a place in the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Marrone was among 17 inventors inducted into the Hall of Fame on May 8 in Washington, D.C. She was recognized for pioneering effective, environmentally responsible, nature-based products for pest management and plant health and bringing those products to the marketplace.

In a career that has spanned over 40 years, Marrone founded four companies, has been granted 82 U.S. patents and commercialized more than a dozen groundbreaking biological products — ones derived from microorganisms and plants.

“To be among people who invented Post-it Notes, cardiac stents, the Super Soaker and all these amazing inventions was amazing and humbling,” says Marrone, crediting her experience as an NC State doctoral student in entomology for helping her get there.

Acknowledging the contributions Marrone has made to her alma mater, Steve Lommel, associate dean for research with NC State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, called Marrone “a testament to entrepreneurial vision.”

“She’s translated her deep scientific expertise in biological pest control into impactful, sustainable solutions for agriculture,” he says. “Her dedication further shines through her active engagement and support for nurturing the next generation of agricultural innovators.”

Marrone’s Path to NC State

Marrone came to NC State in 1978, after earning her bachelor’s degree in entomology from Cornell University. From childhood, she’d felt driven to find alternatives to conventional pesticides.

Growing up on a woodsy 40-acre spread in southern Connecticut, she was captivated by insects but knew that some could be destructive.

“I learned I wanted to do work on natural pest control since I was like 11 or 12,” she says.

To save a prized tree, her father attempted to control spongy moth caterpillars with chemicals. After that led to the demise of beneficial insects, he turned to Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt, a soil-dwelling bacterium used in the first —  and still most — widely used biopesticide.

“My father was an early adopter,” she says.

That experience sparked her drive to learn more and use that knowledge to make a difference.

Finding Support Among the Wolfpack

Marrone’s passion was further fueled at NC State, where she worked alongside a cadre of entomologists who broke ground in finding ways to minimize pesticide use.

“NC State was extremely instrumental for me because the professors I had were among the pioneers of integrated pest management in the whole world,” she says, mentioning the late Bob Rabb, retired professors J.R. Bradley Jr., Ron Stinner and John Van Duyn and Professor George Kennedy, among others. 

That cohort of professors was really into ecologically based (integrated pest management), and I was indoctrinated. No question, that heavily influenced my career going forward.

For integrated pest management to succeed, they knew that they needed a better understanding of pests’ biology and their intricate interactions with the environment.

They enlisted Marrone’s help with a large-scale National Science Foundation-funded study that looked at relationships among soybeans, their soil and the surrounding environment.

“That cohort of professors was really into ecologically based (integrated pest management), and I was indoctrinated,” Marrone recalls. “No question, that heavily influenced my career going forward.”

Taking the Entrepreneurial Plunge

After her graduation, Marrone was hired by Monsanto Agricultural Co. to lead its insect biology group, looking for ways to control pests without chemicals. From there, she was recruited by Novo Nordisk to start the biopesticide subsidiary Entotech Inc.

When Entotech was sold, she decided to go out on her own. She founded AgraQuest Inc. in 1990, Marrone Bio Innovations in 2006 and, with fellow entrepreneur Jim Boyd, the Invasive Species Corp. in 2022.

Under Marrone’s leadership, AgraQuest and Marrone Bio Innovations screened tens of thousands of microorganisms and plant extracts, received hundreds of patents from across the globe and developed several pioneering biological solutions for farmers, gardeners and others.

Among those products is the multiple-award-winning Serenade, the first broad-spectrum, bio-based fungicide, now sold in over 100 countries for use on a wide variety of crops and in home gardens.

Bayer CropScience bought AgraQuest in 2012, and Bioceres Crop Solutions acquired Marrone Bio Innovations in 2022.

Her latest venture, the Invasive Species Corp., discovers, develops and deploys bio-based solutions to control invasive species, including invasive mollusks, fish, forest pests and weeds. 

The company sells Zequanox, a biopesticide used to control invasive zebra and quagga mussels that can alter water quality and outcompete native species for food and space. It’s also developing a natural product against invasive carp and other fish and working to find a microbial solution to control burrowing shrimp that harm native oyster beds.

Sharing Her Entrepreneurial Expertise

Over the course of her career, Marrone has overcome countless challenges by drawing on what she has called “an unwavering belief in the vision to create a more sustainable food system” and a deep-seated determination to help realize that vision.

One way she’s now doing that is by sharing her hard-won expertise as a serial entrepreneur as a member of the N.C. Plant Sciences Initiative’s Commercialization Advisory Council.

The council includes successful professionals from the agricultural technology industry and NC State leaders focused on innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization.

I think it’s really important for researchers to look and see if there is an outlet (for their discoveries) to be utilized.

Council members identify plant sciences technologies coming from N.C. PSI research that have potential for success in the ag tech marketplace, provide advice and recommendations for commercializing them, and offer mentorship and guidance to emerging companies that are part of the initiative’s Seed2Grow program. Marrone says she chose to join the council “because I love talking to would-be entrepreneurs, and I thought that I could help from my long history of being a serial entrepreneur.”

Too often, she says, researchers have ideas that could solve problems, but those ideas don’t make it beyond the lab or peer-reviewed papers.

“Since my inventions have turned into multiple products that are used globally, I think it’s really important for researchers to look and see if there is an outlet (for their discoveries) to be utilized,” she says.

“It makes the U.S. more competitive, creates jobs, creates economic development and increases innovation. … And — the biggest reason — it has an impact on the world.”