DOE collaborative to establish biomanufacturing hub

Northern San Joaquin Valley, California, which includes San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Merced counties, has been historically underserved. The region lacks quality jobs that can sustain families and faces ongoing environmental justice and public health challenges. However, the region’s large-scale food and agricultural activity, manufacturing capacity, and proximity to hubs of biotechnology innovation make it poised to be a leader in bioindustrial manufacturing, which would provide a needed boost to the region’s economy and the nation’s bioeconomy.

As part of a newly established collaborative, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU) will co-lead an effort to establish a bioindustrial manufacturing capability in California’s Northern San Joaquin Valley. The Circular Bioeconomy Innovation Collaborative (CBIO Collaborative), also led by University of California, Merced (UC, Merced) and BEAM Circular, was awarded $1 million from the U.S. National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Regional Innovation Engines program, which helps partners collaborate on economic, societal, and technological opportunities for their regions.

The award will enable CBIO Collaborative to develop actionable and strategic plans to create an innovation campus and ecosystem in the Northern San Joaquin Valley. It will be focused on biomanufacturing, which harnesses biology’s natural systems to create sustainable products, materials, and fuels from renewable materials.

“Scaling up biomanufacturing technologies is a crucial part of bringing innovations to market, but there are gaps in the translation of basic discoveries to large-scale applications,” said Deepti Tanjore, ABPDU Director and a project co-investigator. “The Northern San Joaquin Valley has the potential to fill these gaps. Its renewable agricultural residues can serve as feedstocks for biomanufacturing technologies, and its complementary manufacturing capabilities can enable commercial-scale production.”

“Having innovation and production close together is crucial, and that proximity is not trivial,” said James Gardner, ABPDU program manager and project co-investigator. “Being able to drive 90 minutes to test out a technology is a game changer.”

The collaborative will leverage expertise from ABPDU, a bioprocess scale-up facility funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) with more than 10 years of experience scaling innovative biomanufacturing technologies from the lab to commercial deployment. As part of CBIO Collaborative, ABPDU researchers will serve as technical advisers and facilitate connections to its broad network of industry partners.

“ABPDU has made tremendous progress bringing bioproducts to commercial relevance and has made a direct impact on the success of the biomanufacturing industry,” said Dr. Valerie Sarisky-Reed, Director of BETO. “The Circular Bioeconomy Innovation Collaborative is another example of ABPDU’s continued commitment to working with local communities to ensure the advancement of the bioeconomy.” 

In recent years, the biomanufacturing industry has received increased attention. The Biden – Harris administration issued the National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative last year, ushering in new investments in this area. ABPDU has continued to adapt to meet the changing needs of this industry. Its state-of-the-art facility serves as a test bed for companies to develop their technologies and generate prototype materials. By partnering with ABPDU, small companies that lack significant infrastructure can leverage ABPDU’s equipment and experienced staff.

As one of the few publicly funded scale-up facilities in the country, ABPDU has helped close the nation’s “fermentation capacity gap.” Since its inception in 2011, it has collaborated with over 75 companies, more than 50 of which are located in California. Twenty of these California-based companies have since raised over $1.7 billion in private investments. These collaborations have successfully brought bio-based products to market — 17 companies have released commercial products, including skis made with algae oil, cosmetic products, and a variety of food products.

The industry’s rapid growth has created an increased demand for an experienced workforce and ABPDU has become a leader in preparing scientists and engineers to work in the bioeconomy. More than 90 staff members have been trained at ABPDU, and many have gone on to pursue careers in biomanufacturing. ABPDU also partnered with UC Berkeley to develop a course that provides hands-on experience with bioprocessing equipment. 

One significant piece of feedback by ABPDU’s industry partners is that they need to go out of state to further develop their products toward large-scale production. “The Circular Bioeconomy Innovation Collaborative is a tremendous example of California’s leadership in building the green industries of the future,” said Kaina Pereira, Senior Advisor, Business Development in the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. “Our agricultural heartland is exactly the place to launch and scale innovative solutions in the bioeconomy that benefit workers, communities, and our food system while advancing the state’s climate priorities. This development award from NSF is fantastic recognition of the North San Joaquin Valley’s role as a global leader in the bioeconomy.”

The CBIO Collaborative will also prepare a proposal to become a future NSF Engine, which would make it eligible for up to $160 million in federal funding.