- BioMADE Announces $18.7 Million in funding for nine groundbreaking projects.
- Projects aim to strengthen DoD supply chains, reshore manufacturing jobs, and enhance domestic bioindustrial manufacturing.
- Initiatives include natural rubber production, waste-to-bioplastics, healthy proteins for warfighters, and workforce development.
- Bioindustrial manufacturing leverages American farmers’ feedstocks for resilient, sustainable supply chains.
- Projects span diverse areas such as food production, carbon capture, waste-to-bioproducts, and energy reduction.
BioMADE who are advancing domestic bioindustrial manufacturing and the fulfillment of Department of Defense (DoD) sustainability objectives, has just made a significant announcement. The organisation is proud to unveil an investment of $18.7 million allocated to fund nine projects, each designed to make substantial strides in reshoring manufacturing jobs to the United States, fortifying the DoD supply chain, and enhancing the country’s domestic bioindustrial manufacturing ecosystem.
Nine Projects to Reshape Bioindustrial Manufacturing
These nine projects encompass an array of transformative initiatives, each with a unique focus and purpose, collectively contributing to BioMADE’s overarching mission. Dr. Douglas Friedman, Chief Executive Officer at BioMADE, expressed optimism regarding these projects’ wide-reaching impact, stating, “These projects will help unlock the benefits of bioindustrial manufacturing for all Americans – from everyday consumers to farmers to warfighters. By creating new products and transforming how we domestically manufacture existing products, these projects – and the bioindustrial manufacturing industry at large – have the potential to positively impact nearly every aspect of our lives.”
Bioindustrial Manufacturing: A Revolution Powered by Biology
Bioindustrial manufacturing represents a revolution that harnesses the power of biology to produce the goods that Americans use daily. By initiating the process with feedstocks cultivated by American farmers, bioindustrial manufacturing fortifies supply chains and reduces international dependencies. This approach yields diverse products, including industrial chemicals, robust fibers, growable cement, fire-resistant composites, and food-grade proteins – all produced sustainably. Many of these products hold both commercial and critical military applications.
Building Resilience and Creating Opportunities
Dr. Melanie Tomczak, Head of Programs and Chief Technology Officer at BioMADE, highlighted the significance of these projects: “These projects represent the breadth and depth of what can be accomplished with bioindustrial manufacturing. These innovations can play a key role in enhancing our military readiness, strengthening domestic supply chains, supporting American farmers, and creating jobs in rural communities.”
The announced projects encompass a wide array of tools and applications, spanning innovative food production, carbon capture technologies, waste-to-bioproducts conversion, and energy input reductions. These endeavors underscore BioMADE’s pivotal role in uniting private industry, research universities, nonprofit organizations, secondary schools, and community colleges. The projects extend across the nation, in collaboration with 17 diverse member organizations across nine states, including emerging leaders in the biotechnology revolution, such as Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, and Utah.
This substantial funding announcement marks a significant step toward BioMADE’s mission of transforming bioindustrial manufacturing in the United States, strengthening national security, and fostering a sustainable future.
Nine projects
Technology and Innovation Projects
7 projects | $6.27 million federal funds | $7.49 million non-federal cost share. Federal funding from the U.S. Department of Defense
Accumulate and De-Risk Manufacturing for Commercial Readiness of Advanced Probiotics: This project enables rapid scale-up and commercialization of a recombinant antimicrobial probiotic that keeps poultry healthy, which will result in large-scale domestic manufacturing of the probiotic and help farmers raise healthy chickens while significantly decreasing the carbon footprint of protein production.
Member team: General Probiotics (MN), Ginkgo Bioworks (MA)
Development of a Sustainable, Low-Cost, Oil Process for Heart-Healthy DoD Rations: This project scales-up the domestic biomanufacturing and downstream processing of microalgae oils, to produce healthy, sustainable oils that can be used in a wide range of industries and products from materials to foods.
Member: Checkerspot (CA/UT)
Fluorescence and Raman Spectroscopy for Scaled-Down in Situ Product Monitoring: This project will evaluate scale-down approaches in microbioreactors and their applicability in predicting deployment of process analytical technology and fermentation performance throughout scale-up.
Member: North Carolina State University
Decarbonizing DoD Fleets Using Bio-Based Carbon Black from Domestic Agricultural Waste: Using feedstocks such as soybean molasses, bagasse, and wood residues, this project will develop samples of bio-based, carbon-negative carbon black and polymers. Carbon black is used in a wide range of products including rubber compounds and tires, and is traditionally heavily reliant on fossil fuels.
Member team: Origin Materials (CA), University of California-Davis
Potential Benefit of Superbrewed Food’s Sustainable Postbiotic Protein on Warfighter Health: This project will produce a sustainable protein ingredient and evaluate its potential benefits for the warfighter, including increased energy and endurance, shortened recovery times, improved focus and concentration, and overall performance.
Member: Superbrewed Food (DE)
U.S. Production of Natural Rubber to Reduce C-Release and Increase C-Storage and Rubber Imports: After cultivating and producing natural rubber from domestically grown dandelions, this project will test extraction protocols to improve production. Natural rubber and resins can be used in footwear, apparel, tires, and more.
Member team: Kultevat (MO), FutureFuel Chemical Company (AR)
Upscaling and Downscaling Purification for a Novel Bioplastic Process: This project will use a patented microbe to turn waste materials such as carbon dioxide, ethanol, and methane into a biodegradable plastic, and produce enough material to test for commercial use.
Member: Industrial Microbes (CA)
Education and Workforce Development Projects
2 projects | $2.0 million federal funds | $2.92 million non-federal cost share. Federal funding from the U.S. Department of Defense
Completing the Bioindustrial Pipeline: A Multidisciplinary Workforce Development Institute for Biological and Bioprocess Engineering for the Appalachian Highlands: Through the development of a set of bioprocess engineering, bioindustrial automation, and synthetic biology curriculum modules, traditional and non-traditional high school and college students will be equipped with the skills necessary to succeed in the bioindustrial manufacturing industry.
Member team: East Tennessee State University, Niswonger Foundation (TN)
Utah Bioindustrial Manufacturing: An Ecosystem to Grow for the Future: This project will use stackable credentials and early outreach activities to increase access to bioindustrial manufacturing careers and continued education to build a sustainable talent pipeline.
Member team: Utah STEM Foundation, Talent Ready Utah, Checkerspot, Technology Holding, Utah Valley University, Salt Lake Community College (UT)
