Industrial biotech funding boost will help Scotland's journey to net zero

Scotland’s bioeconomy has been given a funding boost thanks to a fresh round of innovation support.

Awards of up to £100,000 will be made by the Industrial Biotechnology Innovation Centre (IBioIC) to support collaborative projects that can deliver “measurable economic, societal or environmental impact”, using industrial biotechnology techniques to develop new processes and materials.

Research teams must include partners from both academia and industry, and demonstrate a clear route to market for the technologies and products being developed.

The Scottish Government’s national strategy for economic transformation, published in March, highlighted industrial biotechnology as a key sector for decarbonisation and the transition to net zero.

The current call for projects is the sixth time IBioIC has awarded funding through its flagship innovation fund.

Teams have until September 1 to submit proposals, with projects expected to start in early 2023.

To date, the innovation centre has supported more than 200 companies to bring new bio-based processes and products to the global market.

Liz Fletcher, director of business engagement at IBioIC, said: “Scotland has an opportunity to become a leader in the biotechnology field - particularly as we transition to net zero - and our role as an innovation centre is to support companies to take concepts and ideas to the next stage of becoming reality.

Research teams must include partners from both academia and industry, and demonstrate a clear route to market for the technologies and products being developed.

“Collaboration is central to the growth of the bioeconomy. IBioIC’s network spans many different sectors critical to Scotland’s economy and we hope to see a wide range of potential applications of industrial biotechnology reflected in the applications we receive,” she added.