ST. PAUL, MN, September 14, 2022 –
ST. PAUL, MN, September 14, 2022 – At the White House today, BioMADE announced a suite of nine projects that will collectively help secure America’s future through bioindustrial manufacturing innovation, education, and collaboration. Consistent with the goals of the newly signed Executive Order on Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy, the projects will lead to the creation new biomanufactured products, develop best practices, assist with vaccine component production, and grow the bioindustrial manufacturing workforce.
“The projects announced today will elevate the commercial readiness of bio-products, optimize chemicals for bio-derived foams and adhesives, and develop state-of-the-art methodology for fermenter design that will accelerate technology commercialization across the bioindustrial manufacturing industry,” said Dr. Douglas Friedman, BioMADE CEO. “They will also help build a skilled workforce to fill new jobs created in the growing domestic bioeconomy by establishing biotechnology-focused summer camps for underserved communities, creating a training course for biosecurity in bioengineering, and launching high school bioengineers in rural and inner-city high schools on paths to college and careers.”
This announcement comes on the heels of an Executive Order from President Biden that launches a National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative, which will create jobs, build secure and more resilient supply chains, and lower prices for Americans by growing biomanufacturing capacity, expanding market opportunities for bio-based products, training a diverse workforce, and more.
Friedman announced these projects while participating on a panel discussion at a Summit on the National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative hosted at the White House. The panel was moderated by Dr. Elisabeth Reynolds, Special Assistant to the President for Manufacturing and Economic Development and also featured Ms. Barbara McQuiston, Deputy Chief Technology Officer for Science and Technology for the U.S. Department of Defense and Dr. Christophe Schilling, CEO of BioMADE member Geno. Panelists discussed investments, resources, and opportunities that will allow the U.S. to harness the full promise and potential of biomanufacturing.
“This Executive Order will move the U.S. biomanufacturing industry forward by creating a cohesive whole-of-government approach, opening doors for infrastructure investments, and building and sustaining a robust biotechnology workforce,” added Friedman. “We’re excited by the opportunity to work with the Administration to lead the U.S. to more resilient and sustainable supply chains and create a thriving bioeconomy, both through the projects we are announcing today and the work of all of our member ecosystem.”
BioMADE is also announcing two major projects funded by the American Rescue Act, through the Rapid Assistance for Coronavirus Economic Response Grant Program from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. These projects, totaling nearly $9 million, will assist with vaccine adjuvant development and manufacturing antigens critical for use in testing and medical treatments for coronaviruses. Together, these innovative projects play a critical role in the safety, efficacy, delivery, and stability of industrial components of vaccines and viral testing.
Launched in 2021, BioMADE is a Manufacturing Innovation Institute sponsored by the U.S. Department of Defense. By supporting the development of biomanufacturing technologies, BioMADE and its network of 150+ members across 29 states are strengthening American competitiveness, creating a more resilient supply chain, and helping the U.S. becoming more self-sufficient. Read about the projects below, and learn more about BioMADE by visiting biomade.org.
Technology and Innovation Projects
4 projects | $5.28 million federal funds | $5.38 million non-federal cost share
Federal funding from the U.S. Department of Defense
Rational Fermentation Scaleup: Response of Metabolic Kinetics to Hydrodynamic Variability: This project will develop a state-of-the-art methodology for fermenter design and scale-up that will be translatable to different microbial strains and processes, thereby helping accelerate technology commercialization in the biomanufacturing industry.
Member team: Iowa State University, Cargill, Geno
Benchmarking Synthetic Biology Product Development: This project will elevate the commercial readiness of bio-products throughout the bioindustrial manufacturing ecosystem by benchmarking performance of best practices in product development.
Member team: University of California, Berkeley, R2DIO, Antheia, Genomatica, Amyris, Gingko Bioworks, Joywell Foods, Demetrix
Betamethylvalerolactone Downstream Processing and Application Development: This project will optimize the fermentation and downstream processing of betamethylvalerolactone, eventually incorporating it into sustainable and bio-derived elastomers, foams, and adhesives.
Member team: Valerian Materials, National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center, University of Minnesota, Scientific Bioprocessing
Biomass Re-Utilization Processes in Industrial Biotechnology: Using cell recycling, this project will explore, research, test, and validate methods to improve fermentation process yields and productivities from bacterial biocatalysts, thereby reducing the operational costs of industrial fermentation processes.
Member team: Geno, University of Illinois
Special Technology and Innovation Projects
2 projects | $8.8 million federal funds
Funded by the American Rescue Act through the Rapid Assistance for Coronavirus Economic Response Grant Program
Distributed Manufacturing of Antigen for Serological Testing and Countermeasures: This project will advance innovative, proof-of-concept biomanufacturing platforms and technologies for rapid, cost-effective, distributed domestic manufacturing of antigens to use in testing and medical treatments for coronaviruses.
Member team: University of California, Davis, Boston University, University of Texas-Austin, Johns Hopkins University, University of Georgia, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Domestic Supply Chains for Vaccine Manufacturing: This project brings together scientists and engineers from industry and academia to develop and demonstrate pilot-scale manufacturing of several lipid adjuvants to support coronavirus vaccine production.
Member team: Amyris and University of California, Berkeley
Education and Workforce Development Projects
3 projects | $561,000 federal funds | $575,000 non-federal cost share
Federal funding from the U.S. Department of Defense
Dayton Biomanufacturing Camp for Underserved Communities: This project will establish summer camps for underserved communities in Dayton, OH to enhance biotechnology and biomanufacturing awareness, educate students on related career and education opportunities, and bridge the gap between curricula and industry-relevant skills.
Member team: UES, Inc., BioPharmaceutical Technology Center
Development of Biosecurity Sequence Screening Training Course for Bioengineers: This project will create a Biosecurity Sequence Screening Training Course for Bioengineers that will increase awareness of the proactive safety measures needed to sustainably grow the bioindustrial manufacturing sector.
Member team: Signature Science, Aclid, Rice University
Launching High School Bioengineers on their Paths to College and Careers: This project will build momentum for biomanufacturing careers nationwide, including in hard-to-reach rural and inner-city high schools, by enabling access to the BioBuilderClub.
Member team: BioBuilder, Ars BioTechnica, East Tennessee State University, Daicel Arbor Bioscience