Decade of innovation support injects £35 million into Scotland’s bio-economy

Scottish industrial biotechnology sector on track to achieve associated turnover of £1.2 billion by 2025.

Scotland’s bio-economy has enjoyed a £35 million boost thanks to a decade of support from the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC).

The figure represents the additional funding for research and development that the innovation centre has helped to attract since it was established in 2014. New figures released to mark its tenth anniversary reveal that the IBioIC has supported more than 260 start-ups, small businesses and established companies to bring bio-based processes and products to market, helping to create a “thriving bio-economy” in Scotland. Building on £6.8m of funding from the innovation centre, 215 projects have generated more than five times as much in additional investment from third-party sources.

Industrial biotechnology encompasses a range of techniques and processes, supporting the creation of more sustainable materials, consumer goods and pharmaceuticals through the use of naturally sourced alternatives to petrochemicals. It also aims to maximise the use of by-products, and minimise waste, from existing industrial processes.

IBioIC has supported more than 260 start-ups, small businesses and established companies to bring bio-based processes and products to market.

As a direct result of the Glasgow-based innovation centre’s activity to date, the Scottish industrial biotechnology sector is said to be exceeding growth expectations and is on track to achieve associated turnover of £1.2 billion by 2025, in line with the more ambitious target set out in an updated version of the national plan for industrial biotechnology. That revised plan also sets a target of having 220 companies operating in the sector, supporting some 4,000 jobs.

In January, First Minister Humza Yousaf announced that the IBioIC had secured a long-term investment commitment from the Scottish Funding Council to continue the development of the bio-economy and support Scotland’s transition to net zero.

Mark Bustard, chief executive of the IBioIC, said: “Over the past decade, we have seen Scotland evolve into a leading innovation ecosystem - and we have the potential to become the go-to destination for scaling up bio-economy businesses and manufacturing bio-based products and materials.

“IBioIC’s contribution has been central to the growth of the sector, and this is reflected in the projects we have supported, skills programmes delivered, and initiatives created, such as the Biotech Innovators accelerator for early-stage companies. Generating further impact will remain a key focus as we move forward. We will build on our efforts to support young businesses and entrepreneurs to develop more sustainable products through industrial biotechnology and help them secure the investment they need to take these ideas to a commercial stage.”

Mark Bustard, chief executive of the IBioIC: 'Over the past decade, we have seen Scotland evolve into a leading innovation ecosystem.' Picture: Chris Watt Photography

The centre’s membership network recently hit 200 companies, with LiYF Bioethanol taking it over the milestone figure. The Swiss start-up is exploring advanced second-generation bioethanol, produced from agricultural waste, that could reduce dependency on fossil fuels and contribute to net zero targets by unlocking the production of new biomolecules to replace fossil sources in the petrochemical industry. The company recently opened a facility in Ayrshire, with the ambition of establishing a pilot plant in Scotland for potential end users to validate the technology and trial the fuel.

Hangama Wanner, founder and chief executive of LiYF Bioethanol, said: “Joining IBioIC’s network has provided us with opportunities to meet new partners from around the world that we likely wouldn’t have met otherwise, as well as access to valuable support from the innovation centre team.

“The next step in our journey involves expanding our global footprint, and Scotland’s thriving tech and start-up community really appealed to us as the next destination for driving this forward. We’re looking forward to developing our relationships with other IBioIC members and collaborating with academics and businesses that share our vision for expanding the scope of sustainable energy.”

The innovation centre’s network is designed to connect industry with Scotland’s academic expertise to support proof-of-concept projects. It also provides access to a range of support schemes for start-ups, skills programmes for developing talent and access to bioprocess scale-up facilities - FlexBio and RapidBio.

To commemorate its tenth year, the centre is hosting a reception at the Scottish Parliament as part of Bio-economy Week and will also mark a decade of progress at its annual conference at Glasgow’s Technology and Innovation Centre this Wednesday and Thursday. Speakers include Teen Tech charity founder and TV personality Maggie Philbin and the Scottish Government’s chief entrepreneurial adviser Mark Logan.

Meanwhile, a Highlands safety and training centre is to train up to 1,000 workers each year who will be crucial to Scotland’s transition to a net-zero economy. Aurora Energy Services, with support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), has invested £1.2m to establish The Renewable Energy Training Centre in Inverness - the only facility of its kind serving the region. It will focus on retraining oil and gas sector workers and preparing new entrants for deployment in the UK’s nascent renewables industries.

Aurora will provide safety training, accreditation and advanced technical skills courses for more than 1,000 people a year, including a programme of inaugural and refresher courses which are needed to work in the onshore and offshore wind sector and other renewables industries.

David Duguid, Aurora Energy Services’ operations director UK North, said: “Wind energy project operators and developers are struggling to recruit staff with the prerequisite competency levels and that’s even before many of the recent successful ScotWind bids for fixed and floating wind farms get up and running. If Scotland is serious about meeting net-zero levels by 2045 we have to put in place the workforce to construct, maintain and service the vast wind-related infrastructure which is ongoing or coming down the line, and Aurora’s Inverness facility can play an important part in that process.”