Not-for-profit organisation, Cellular Agriculture Australia (CAA), has released an industry-first report that shows Australia has the potential to become a global leader in the production of precision-fermented ingredients.
The white paper provides an in-depth analysis of Australia’s emerging precision fermentation sector, a process that harnesses the power of microorganisms to produce specific functional ingredients that can be used in various food and agricultural products.
Precision fermentation has the potential to complement existing food production methods to help future-proof Australia’s food system, whilst also unlocking new economic opportunities and building sovereign capability.
Australia is currently home to a small but diverse and innovative cluster of companies, such as Norco-backed CSIRO spin-out Eden Brew, All G Foods led by entrepreneur Jan Pacas, and ASX listed company Noumi, which has diversified into precision fermentation.
In an effort to expand the sector’s capabilities and allow companies to fast-track product development in the food and beverage sector, Queensland University of Technology (QUT) and Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator (FaBA) recently invested $3.9 million into transforming the Mackay Renewable Biocommodities Pilot Plant (MRBPP) into a state-of-the-art food-grade compliant facility.
Translating research into commercially viable products like precision-fermented dairy proteins and fats, these companies and organisations are helping to position Australia as a destination for the commercialisation and scale of precision-fermented ingredients.
Despite significant progress to date, the CAA report stressed that industry’s potential will only be realised when the Australian government provides the necessary support required to ensure companies have access to the infrastructure, research and fit-for-purpose regulatory systems required to scale and commercialise.
CAA’s chief executive officer, Dr. Sam Perkins, said Australia has an opportunity to build on existing sovereign capability across the precision fermentation value chain, including robust research capability, a collaborative ecosystem of companies, a well-established regulatory system, and an emerging commercial landscape.
“We have all the puzzle pieces here, but government support is crucial to advancing the sector and ensuring Australian companies remain onshore. The window of opportunity for this is finite,” said Perkins.
To achieve this, the white paper includes a series of recommendations outlining opportunities for Australian Federal and State governments, such as:
- The Department of Health & Aged Care increasing resourcing to FSANZ, thereby enabling increased capability and capacity for FSANZ to deal with applications for foods produced using gene technology and support the industry to be internationally competitive.
- The Department of Industry, Science and Resources adopting cellular agriculture technologies (including precision fermentation) in the government's innovation agenda, in particular, with reference within the Australian Government’s proposed national strategy for biotechnology/bioeconomy.
- The Department of Education recognising food as a priority application of synthetic biology through precision fermentation in the updated National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS).
Encouragingly, the Department of Industry, Science & Resources awarded $4.3 million in grant funding through its Industry Growth Program (IPG) to Australian-based precision fermentation contract manufacturer Cauldron Ferm.
While CAA recognises this as a positive step, the organisation states that more significant and sustained funding and support is needed. In doing so, precision fermentation could significantly contribute to the Australian Federal Government’s goal to transition towards net zero and create a diversified and resilient food system and economy.
The full report is available at cellularagricultureaustralia.org.
