In May, Fermbox Bio, a synthetic biology firm harnessing microbial precision fermentation for the sustainable manufacture of bio-alternatives, announced their partnership with Dyadic International Inc, a globally active biotech organization which is indexed on NASDAQ:DYAI. This milestone marks Dyadic's inaugural collaboration with an Indian business for non-pharmaceutical purposes on the Dapibus™ stage and brings together the substantial product development and scale-up process engineering knowhow of Fermbox with Dyadic's exclusive filamentous fungal-based microbial protein production platform in order to conceive, fabricate and trade inventive animal-free alternative proteins and biomaterials.
“We are very excited to partner with Dyadic to bring our complementary skills to action and use its novel Dapibus™ platform to create alternative biomaterials that are not only sustainable but also economically viable. Our joint expertise across expression systems and execution capabilities from lab to large-scale manufacturing, uniquely positions us for success. We have a long-standing relationship with Dyadic leadership, and we believe that this co-development agreement can potentially accelerate the timelines for both companies to bring new and commercially viable bio-alternates to the market sooner,” commented Mr. Subramani (suBBu) Ramachandrappa.
Fermbox has both U.S. and India operations, giving it a strategic edge in terms of global collaboration as well as access to Indian scientific and production resources. This partnership will enable Fermbox to utilize India's proficiency in gene expression and enzymatic pathway engineering for constructing efficient microbial strains, then taking advantage of the country's assets in cost-efficient, large-scale manufacturing to make alt protein products viable to the international marketplace. This partnership marks a watershed moment for synthetic biology with its potential to motivate others to copy this model for ensuring product development success as well as materializing commercialization ambitions.
“I am excited to announce this fully funded co-development and marketing agreement with Fermbox which is consistent with our business strategy of focusing on near-term commercialization opportunities that can create shareholder value,” said Joe Hazelton, Chief Business Officer of Dyadic. “Fermbox has extensive expertise in bio-alternatives development and microbial precision fermentation which we expect will accelerate our ability to exploit the Dapibus™ platform and expand Dyadic’s product offerings for non-pharmaceutical alternative proteins applications, such as food, nutrition, wellness, and other bioproducts. We anticipate this collaboration will enhance our market penetration into the alternative protein markets, while at the same time continuing to pursue our biopharmaceutical activities which are advancing at a rapid pace. We believe that this collaboration will further leverage our proprietary Dapibus™ platform toward developing and commercializing multiple end-market animal-free protein products.”
Nicole Rocque, Senior Innovation Specialist at The Good Food Institute (GFI) India, expresses her support for this new collaboration and the precedent it sets, pointing to India's potential role in the global SynBio industry. Going beyond simply becoming a scale-up or manufacturing hub, Rocque believes India can take advantage of its research capabilities to develop groundbreaking technologies. As the population increases and demand for nutritious food soars ever higher, she sees an opportunity for India to assume a leadership position by creating sustainable alternatives that could feed our planet's growing population while serving as a template for other emerging markets. GFI India is leading the charge in our nation as the go-to agency for knowledge on smart protein production and convener of experts in this field.
“I am excited to announce this fully funded co-development and marketing agreement with Fermbox which is consistent with our business strategy of focusing on near-term commercialization opportunities that can create shareholder value,” said Joe Hazelton, Chief Business Officer of Dyadic. “Fermbox has extensive expertise in bio-alternatives development and microbial precision fermentation which we expect will accelerate our ability to exploit the Dapibus™ platform and expand Dyadic’s product offerings for non-pharmaceutical alternative proteins applications, such as food, nutrition, wellness, and other bioproducts. We anticipate this collaboration will enhance our market penetration into the alternative protein markets, while at the same time continuing to pursue our biopharmaceutical activities which are advancing at a rapid pace. We believe that this collaboration will further leverage our proprietary Dapibus™ platform toward developing and commercializing multiple end-market animal-free protein products.”
Nicole Rocque, Senior Innovation Specialist at The Good Food Institute (GFI) India, has expressed her support for the collaboration, and the impact it has had on setting a precedent. “A co-development partnership of this kind highlights the emerging role India can play in the global SynBio industry, not just as a scale-up and manufacturing location but also by harnessing India’s research capabilities to develop future-proof technologies. As the global population rises and the need for nutritious and affordable food sources grow, India has the potential to be a leader in the development of sustainable alternatives that have the potential to feed a growing population while showcasing a model of growth for other emerging markets.” GFI India provides expertise as well as being an authority and facilitator within India's smart protein sector.