Teagasc is currently seeking tenders for a service provider to develop a business case for the establishment of a pilot scale precision fermentation plant.

The plant is earmarked for development at the Teagasc Food Research Centre, Moorepark, Co. Cork.

The anticipated location for the facility, which is proposed to be operational by June 2028 or earlier, is within or immediately adjacent to the existing Moorepark Technology Ltd.

Fermentation has been a primary means of processing and preserving food from ancient times.

The modern application of the technology enables the development of foods and food ingredients with specific predefined functional properties.

Precision fermentation is a rapidly developing field with opportunities for development of techno- and bio- functional food ingredients and speciality chemicals.

The technology has been used since the 1980s to produce enzymes used in food manufacture, vitamins, insulin, and vaccines.

However, there is renewed excitement about how it can transform the food supply chain due to advances in genomics.

According to Teagasc, precision fermentation offers potential to grow and enhance the circular bioeconomy supporting the development of a more sustainable food system.

It also offers opportunities for development of high-value ingredients and molecules that have applications across the food and pharma channels.

Precision fermentation uses genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the manufacturing process.

The GMOs will not themselves be part of the resulting food or food ingredient and will not be released into the environment.

Therefore, the fermentation plant will need to be of a standard and have the required physical barriers to enable it to be licenced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the contained use of GMOs guidelines.

While the proposed facility will be of the standard required to undertake pilot scale precision fermentation, it will also have the capacity to engage in precise and conventional fermentation.

Teagasc expects that many of the companies that already interact with its food programme, including those with established research teams at the Moorepark campus, to be users of the new facility.

The authority also anticipates other companies ranging from high potential innovative start-ups to multi-nationals will have a business requirement for the infrastructure.

The tender documents outline that the successful supplier will complete in-depth reviews of the opportunities for application of precision fermentation in the food sector.

They will identify the key international food companies operating in this sector and explore what companies would engage with the plant once established.

"This will attract significant industrial engagement and development, including new foreign direct investment and will form a focal point for the development of research activity on food bioprocessing both within the Teagasc Food Programme and other research providing organisation (RPOs) in Ireland," the document outlined.

Along with the business case, the supplier will provide recommendations on plant scale, guidance on likely delivery and how the facility will integrate into the Moorepark campus.

The closing date for the submission of tenders for the contract, which is worth an estimated €40,000, is this Monday, March 3, 2025.