Danone has teamed up with Michelin, DMC Biotechnologies and Crédit Agricole Centre France to set up the Biotech Open Platform to develop precision fermentation techniques.
Precision fermentation produces bio-based materials and ingredients that serve as alternatives to fossil-based resources, the company noted.
The project will see an investment of more than €16 million in the first phase, with the industrial and technological platform located in Clermont-Ferrand, France, at the Parc Cataroux Centre for Sustainable Materials – an innovation accelerator supported by Michelin.
It will also receive support from several public and private institutions, including the University of Clermont Auvergne, the company Greentech, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and Clermont Auvergne Métropole.
'The Future Of Food'
Antoine de Saint-Affrique, CEO of Danone, stated, “At Danone, we have always been focused on investing in the future of food, and this partnership is the next step in this journey.
“We look forward to working with our partners to develop cutting-edge fermentation technologies, which will accelerate innovation, health benefits and decarbonisation in the food industry. We are proud to be part of this collective effort and to strengthen our contribution to meet the challenges facing the industry today.”
Florent Menegaux, president of Michelin, added, “The Michelin group is pleased to announce the creation, with its partners, of the Biotech Open Platform – a unique tool that will enhance the development of bio-sourced materials, a key challenge for the industry of tomorrow. Located in Auvergne, it exemplifies Michelin’s unflagging commitment to developing innovation and the regions where the group operates.”
Biotech Open Platform
The Biotech Open Platform seeks to accelerate the development of precision fermentation by enabling the scale-up of innovative products and processes already tested in the laboratory.
By 2025, the project aims to install an initial demo-scale production line, including a fermenter and purification equipment.
In the years that follow, additional equipment will be installed, including a second production line.
This will allow the platform to meet the needs of its founding companies and gradually open it up to other companies facing the challenge of scaling up in the industrial bio-manufacturing sector.
Kenny Erdoes, CEO of DMC commented, “For us, as an American start-up, the development of the new Biotech Open Platform will enable us to accelerate the scale-up and commercialisation of new products leveraging our transformative fermentation technology."
CEO of Crédit Agricole Centre France, Frédéric Baraut, said, “By contributing to the Biotech Open Platform, we are helping to develop a new bio-based sector based in Clermont-Ferrand and also adding to the value and attractiveness of the region. This will also help provide opportunities and synergies to the start-ups in our innovation village, also in the Parc Cataroux.”
