751320Water-safe slug pelletsClosedVouchersInnovate UKThe opportunity is to develop a novel slug poison that is more protective of drinking water than those currently available. Many UK and European drinking water sources are contaminated annually with metaldehyde from slug pellet use. There is no effective technique for its removal from drinking water so to avoid contamination of water supplies the water is run to waste. The idea is to adopt patented technology from the cosmetics and pharmaceuticals industry to develop a nanoparticle that contains metaldehyde in a lipid matrix. Nano-particles will be ingested and digested by slugs, so efficacy of the pesticide is not decreased. But, within a hydrophobic lipid, metaldehyde will be prevented from dissolving into rainfall runoff. This may even render it more amenable to breakdown by soil bacteria. There is therefore considerable potential for improvement of drinking water supply in agricultural catchments. External expertise will be used to assess the robustness of the key assumptions: 1) that metaldehyde within lipid-containing nanoparticles is effective at killing slugs as metaldehyde in conventional slug pellets; and 2) that metaldehyde is released to the water environment more slowly and at lower concentrations, because it is less soluble and/or more likely to be degraded in soil. These will be undertaken as scoping calculations and controlled laboratory experiments by biochemists that have familiarity with nanoparticle chemistry, preparation and use. This has potential to be a patentable technology that would add considerable value to the business as an asset. Some tens of millions of pounds are spent on metaldehyde products in the UK annually, probably about a quarter in drinking water catchments. The technology would be licensed to pesticide manufacturers, to generate income for the business that is not dependent on volatility in the consultancy market; which would increase profit and resilience.