“One-stop shop” precision fermentation CDMO launched in Singapore

In Singapore, agribusiness major ADM and Asia Sustainable Foods Platform have inaugurated their ScaleUp Bio Joint Venture, which will provide contract development and manufacturing operations for precision fermentation for food applications. 

ScaleUp Bio already has a multi-year partnership with A*STAR’s Singapore Institute of Food and Biotechnology Innovation to establish a joint lab focused on precision fermentation. Scheduled to be operational in the first quarter of 2023, the joint lab will be situated within the Food Tech Innovation Centre at Biopolis. It will provide start-ups with fermenters that can support up to 100-L in capacity, associated downstream processing units and relevant testing, as well as analytical equipment for full optimization.

Upon maturity of their growth cycle, start-ups can seamlessly transition to ScaleUp Bio’s new facility, which can further support up to 10,000-L fermentation capacity. Located in the Tuas district, the facility will be wholly owned and operated by ScaleUp Bio and is targeted to be operational by mid-2023.

Singapore, a land-scarce country, has been at the forefront of food tech. Mathys Boeren, CEO of the Asia Sustainable Foods Platform says in a press statement that the JV is a “one-stop shop… to help food start-ups address pain points for food-tech businesses, such as long wait-times for pilot-scale facilities and equipment; the lack of deep product and process development capabilities; and the difficulty in navigating regulatory processes and understanding unfamiliar markets in other parts of Asia.”