Research scientist Sangeeta Negi has been named Los Alamos National Laboratory’s 2026 Battelle Inventor of the Year for her work developing a biological solution aimed at improving crop growth and agricultural productivity.
Battelle manages eight national laboratories across the U.S. The Battelle Inventor of the Year Award recognizes a researcher at each of these labs whose inventions demonstrate exceptional creativity, scientific impact and success in moving technologies beyond their laboratory. Negi was honored in May at the Celebration of Solvers ceremony at Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio.
Biological technology with real-world potential
Negi’s research focuses on naturally occurring, beneficial microorganisms that can help plants absorb nutrients, grow more efficiently and better tolerate environmental stress. Her work aims to improve crop performance while reducing reliance on chemical fertilizers.
Over the course of her career at Los Alamos, Negi has developed multiple patented and patent-pending technologies designed to improve crop and algal productivity through engineered microbial systems. Working with the Lab’s Feynman Center for Innovation, several of these technologies are now advancing toward field testing and commercialization.
Among the most promising is EcoFite, a biological solution that can be added as a seed coating or sprayed on plant leaves. EcoFite is designed to strengthen plant growth by improving interactions between crops and the microbes that live inside them (like a human’s gut microbiome). Early pilot studies have shown strong results across several crops.
In pilot studies, EcoFite significantly improved growth in crops, including lettuce, tomato and chile. Tomato and chile plants treated with the technology showed stronger growth and earlier flowering than untreated plants, results that could help improve harvest timing and crop productivity, especially New Mexico farmers.
“It is exciting to see these technologies move closer to real-world agricultural use,” Negi said. “I was so happy to see tomato plants that had nearly doubled in size and chile plants produce significantly higher yields. We hope this biological approach can help support farmers and improve crop production.”
Innovation supports New Mexico small businesses
“EcoFite has the potential to truly strengthen the nation’s agricultural sector by improving crop productivity and reducing our reliance on fertilizers,” said Elizabeth Hong-Geller, Bioscience division leader.
In 2024, EcoFite received FCI’s Next Big Idea honor for its commercial potential and agricultural applications. The following year, Negi and her team received funding through the New Mexico Small Business Assistance program to move the technology into field trials, testing EcoFite on tomato and lettuce crops at a farm in Velarde, New Mexico, and at the Santa Fe Community College hydroponic greenhouse. Now, Negi is working on a leveraged NMSBA project directly with two additional New Mexico farms to apply EcoFite to lettuce, tomatoes and chile peppers. One farmer explained that if EcoFite could help his chile plants flower sooner and accelerate their lifecycle, it could reduce crop losses caused by early frost. Together, these efforts are helping the team evaluate EcoFite under real-world growing conditions and generate the performance data and farmer feedback needed to advance the technology toward commercial use.
As demand for food continues to grow worldwide, Negi’s research reflects Los Alamos’ broader role in developing practical scientific solutions with applications beyond the Laboratory. With the potential to improve crop productivity, accelerate flowering and reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers, and with applications as either a seed coating or foliar spray, EcoFite could offer growers a practical biological tool with relevance well beyond New Mexico agriculture.
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