Cibus, Inc. Q1 FY2025 earnings call

• Cibus, Inc. believes the first quarter of 2025 validates its commercial strategy and the transformative potential of the RTDS technology platform. - Rice platform: Established a strong foundation in 2024 with agreements with four major IC companies representing ~40% of estimated accessible rice acres in North and Latin America. Advanced field trials, expanded stacked HT traits in rice, and has strategic collaborations. On track for 2027 commercial launch in rice. - Disease resistance work: Canola sclerotinia resistance program made progress, with positive greenhouse data for a third mode of action in March 2025 and preparing for field trials of third and fourth modes of action in canola and testing stacked disease resistance trait. - Soybean platform: Reached a significant milestone in January 2025 by successfully editing a soybean cell for the HT2 trait, with expectations to achieve HT2 edits in soybean plants later in the year. - Sustainable ingredients program: Advanced bio - based fermentation bio fragrance products, completed first stage scale - up of two products, and has a partner - funded project with a large multinational CPG company progressing well. - Regulatory: Achieved several milestones including California Rice Commission approval for planting gene - edited rice in California, EU member states endorsing negotiating mandate on NGTs, Ecuador determining Cibus' rice traits equivalent to conventional breeding, and USDA APHIS designating canola disease resistance traits as not regulated.

In the first quarter of 2025, revenue was $1 million, an increase of $489,000 compared to the $545,000 in the year - ago period due to increased activity in partner - funded projects. R&D expense was $11.8 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to $12 million in the year - ago period, with the decrease primarily due to cost reduction initiatives. SG&A expense was $9.9 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to $7 million in the year - ago period, with the increase primarily due to a $3 million litigation accrual partially offset by a decrease related to cost reduction initiatives. Net loss was $49.4 million for the first quarter of 2025, compared to a net loss of $27 million in the year - ago period, with the increase primarily due to the $21 million non - cash neutral impairment recorded in the first quarter of 2025, and net loss excluding this goodwill impairment was $28.4 million.

• Existing cash and cash equivalents are sufficient to fund planned operating expenses and capital expenditure requirements into the third quarter of 2025. - Focus on several important milestones in 2025 including expansion of commercial relationships with rice companies across North and South America, first trait validation trials in Latin America with delivery of initial traits to customers anticipated by year - end, field trials for sclerotinia resistance in canola, continued development toward an operational soybean platform, and advancement of biofragrance work with expected nominal revenues later in 2025. - Laser - focused on optimizing operations and reducing cash burn rate in 2025 through 2026 to maximize shareholder value as approaching key commercial milestones.

Statements made on the call regarding future financial results, operational goals, and industry prospects are forward - looking and may be subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the call. Please refer to Cibus, Inc.'s SEC filings for a list of associated risks.

Q: Can you just walk through the cash burn and the step - up in the SG&A in Q1 and your views on both of those and how to think about them for the balance of the year?

A: Carlo Broos said cash burn in quarter one was around $4.4 million gross, successfully planned and executed. SG&A in quarter one had an accrual for litigation, but from a cash perspective, it went down.

Q: Have your contacts in Europe given you any sense for what a reasonable time frame would be for the three - way discussions to coalesce on a final text?

A: Peter Beetham said the EU Council vote in March was historic, they entered into trialogue, and they have scheduled many meetings between now and June to complete it, believing it will happen within six months.

Q: What do you expect to see during fourth mode of action field trials in canola in the second quarter? And what would be a favorable result in your view?

A: Greg Gocal said expectation is that field trials' success demonstrates control material is infected by the pathogen and edited material is more resistant than control material.

Q: On the sustainable ingredients space, is there, apart from customer testing, is there any other regulatory or other kind of testing that is required before you can start selling, or it's just because the molecules are the same?

A: Peter Beetham said they've been working closely with prospective partners, and over the next few months it will be tested within customers' hands, and they've started with two products with over a dozen more opportunities in the space.

Q: On the European front, once the trialogue is done and all the regulations are in place, do you anticipate repeating any of the trials for that region? Or they will be for, of course, some of the different crops there. But just wanted to see if the same crops are to be used on or same traits are to be used on the same crops.

A: Peter Beetham said they've been running trials in the UK already, and the UK passed secondary legislation, and they can use trialing in the UK and start trialing in the EU next year.

Q: On the cost reduction front, what kind of run rate are you expecting for the rest of the three quarters in terms of cash burn?

A: Peter Beetham said they're focused on cost reductions, and Carlo Broos said net burn for this year is around $4 million.

Q: To get into the regulatory approvals a little bit, you had the one come in from Ecuador. I was wondering if there are other Latin American countries that are rice producers. Do they have similar regulatory frameworks to Ecuador where it's kind of like an MI regulated situation A: Peter Beetham said Ecuador is an important Latin American country, and many other Latin American countries have looked to Ecuador and have positive regulatory approaches. Greg Gocal added other South American countries already look at gene - edited products as conventional breeding.

Q: In terms of your rice products, I just wanted to ask if there's existing use of clethodim by rice farmers in the Latin American geography or if it's kind of gonna be like a de novo launch of the herbicide tolerance trait with herbicide to farmers.

A: Greg Gocal said clethodim is an approved herbicide in South America, used to manage grass weeds, and Peter Beetham added they will work with partners to go through variety and chemical registrations.