Thanks to a $1.09 million grant from the Michigan Strategic Fund, plus matching funds from Michigan State University (MSU), several bio-based MSU research projects will be fast-tracked for commercial development over the next three years.
MSU recently received the funding from the Michigan Translational Research and Commercialization (“M-TRAC”) program as part of a state-wide initiative to invest in research areas that have shown promise in the laboratory, but need further development in order to become successful in a competitive market. With MSU’s matching funds, a total of $2.44 million will be focused on MSU biotechnology and bioprocessing innovations that have the potential to create superior value-added products and materials from agricultural-based feedstocks, such as:
Over the next three years MSU researchers will be able to apply for funding to help drive laboratory technology toward commercialization, including support for scale-up services in fermentation technology, biochemical synthesis, separations and purification offered through MSU’s affiliated process and scale-up facilities: MBI in Lansing, Mich., and the MSU Bioeconomy Institute in Holland, Mich.
“The bio-based chemical industry is expected to grow to more than $450 billion by 2025,” says Richard Chylla, executive director of MSU Technologies. “With a targeted investment like this, the State of Michigan is leveraging the rich pipeline of MSU’s basic science and research in this sector – which includes more than 34 principal researchers and 111 pending and issued patents – to produce materials, energy, and end-use products from sustainable sources that benefit society.”
By Michigan State University Research