Vertical Announces Strong Results from Its 2020 Wollastonite Research and Development Program with Agrinova
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VERTICAL ANNOUNCES STRONG RESULTS FROM ITS 2020 WOLLASTONITE
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM WITH AGRINOVA
VANCOUVER, BC / February 22, 2021 / VERTICAL EXPLORATION INC. (TSX-V: VERT)
("Vertical"or "the Company") would like to provide an update regarding the positive results it has
received from its 2020 Crop Year research and development program that was conducted by
AGRINOVA using wollastonite from the Company’s St-Onge deposit. All of the research and testing
for the 2020 program was managed and monitored by AGRINOVA, a highly regarded Center for
Research and Innovation in Agriculture in Quebec, in an effort to optimize the potential agricultural
uses of wollastonite and help improve production methods for farmers and agricultural companies
located in Quebec.
Vertical first appointed AGRINOVA in 2018 to carry out a series of research programs related to the
development of a range of agricultural applications for the Company’s St-Onge wollastonite deposit
located near Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec.
In its 2020 program report AGRINOVA again reported positive and encouraging results for Vertical’s
wollastonite related to agricultural applications, similar to past reports it provided to the Company
during its 2018 and 2019 research and development work. AGRINOVA again noted that wollastonite
has many important potential agricultural benefits including biological pest control, increased crop
yields achieved by enhancing plant immunity, and having unique properties that allow it to serve as a
natural bedding for odor management and improved animal hygiene.
AGINOVA’s 2020 field research program involved working with an agricultural producer from the
Nordic Organic Field Crops Innovation Group that volunteered to test Vertical’s wollastonite on its farm
with technical and scientific support from AGRINOVA. The main objective of the 2020 program was to
experiment with the application of wollastonite in Nordic’s organic field crops, Including comparing the
yields obtained with and without the application of wollastonite and to briefly assess the marginal
benefits per hectare of such application.
In spring 2020, two experiments were set up to test the application of wollastonite in human food
wheat (a grass) and organic soybeans (a legume) at the producer’s farm. The full-block devices
included four application rates of wollastonite (0, 1.2, 2.5 and 5t /ha), as recommended in the original
2018 study. The results clearly indicate that the application of wollastonite increases yields at
prescribed doses – the reported increase was 8% in organic wheat and 7% in organic soybeans.
Most importantly, AGRINOVA calculated that the financial benefits of applying wollastonite at a rate of
2.5 kg/ha are calculated to be in the order of $125/ha for wheat and $150/ha for soybeans.
Additionally, a saving in lime costs linked to the product equivalence of approximately $50/ha was
estimated.
At the conclusion of its 2020 report, AGRINOVA summarized that “the application of wollastonite can
be a beneficial way to improve the yields of organic field crops”. Furthermore, AGRINOVA has also
proposed that further in-depth experimentation with the application of the St-Onge wollastonite
product, utilizing different crops and repeated over a minimum of three years, is warranted to define
and describe its full beneficial effects (benefits linked to neutralizing power versus benefits linked to
silica and its power to confer resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses).
ABOUT AGRINOVA
AGRINOVA (www.agrinova.qc.ca), the Center for Research and Innovation in Agriculture, is a
Technology Access Centre located in Alma, Quebec that provides technical help and services to
farmers and agricultural companies throughout the province in order to help them access new
technologies and assist them with the adoption of innovative new technologies and practices.
AGRINOVA’s technology support focuses primarily on consumer concerns (milk quality); reducing
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; organic or natural products; comfort and well-being of animals;
digital adoption; and the economic efficiency of companies.
ABOUT VERTICAL EXPLORATION
Vertical Exploration’s mission is to identify, acquire, and advance high potential mining prospects
located in North America for the benefit of its stakeholders. The Company’s flagship St-Onge
Wollastonite property is located in the Lac-Saint-Jean area in the Province of Quebec.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Peter P. Swistak, President/CEO
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Telephone: 1-604-683-3995
Toll Free: 1-888-945-4770
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the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS: This news release contains forward-looking statements, which relate to
future events or future performance and reflect management’s current expectations and assumptions. Su ch
forward-looking statements reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on assumptions made by and
information currently available to the Company. Investors are cautioned that these forward -looking statements
are neither promises nor guarantees, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause future results to
differ materially from those expected. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and,
except as required under applicable securities legislation, the Company does not assume any obligation to
update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. All of the forward-looking statements made in this
press release are qualified by these cautionary statements and by those made in our filings with SEDAR in
Canada (available at www.sedar.com).