AberInnovation is located on Aberystwyth University’s Gogerddan campus, along with the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS). It has state-of-the-art facilities designed to support businesses in translating bioscience research into applications in food security, sustainability and the circular economy.
BBSRC, IBERS and AberInnovation
Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) funding for agricultural research in Wales stretches back decades. BBSRC’s predecessor council, the Agricultural and Food Research Council (AFRC), grant-funded the Welsh Plant Breeding Station (WPBS) as far back as the 1950s. IBERS is a successor to WPBS and is strategically funded by BBSRC.
IBERS’ history is also intertwined with Aberystwyth University. The WPBS was established at the university in 1919 before becoming an AFRC station in 1983.
In 2014, a joint project between BBSRC and Aberystwyth University began, looking to build on the success and momentum of IBERS. Together, BBSRC and Aberystwyth University conceptualised how research and innovation infrastructure could help to address major challenges relating to food, water and energy security and how this research could be translated into business applications.
BBSRC and Aberystwyth University committed £12 million and £8.5 million, respectively, to construct this infrastructure. This, dovetailed with £20 million from the European Regional Development Fund, through the Welsh Government, enabled the groundwork for the facilities to begin. AberInnovation was built to facilitate the carry forward of research outputs from IBERS and to accelerate innovation for economic impact with industry partners.
AberInnovation’s facilities are outlined along with their capabilities. Video credit: AberInnovation
Video transcript and on-screen captions are available by watching on YouTube.
AberInnovation facilities
Work in developing AberInnovation began in 2017, refurbishing existing office space into the AberInnovation Incubator. Construction work on the remaining AberInnovation facilities began in 2018, working to build:
- The Innovation Hub: a social space to promote discussion and collaboration between AberInnovation tenants
- The Seed Biobank and Processing Facility for Aberystwyth University: a seed processing and storage facility providing plant genetic resources for breeding programmes, holding over 35,000 accessions
- The Future Food Centre: a testing facility for new food products to determine the nutrition and shelf lives of the foods
- The Biorefining Centre: for extracting and analysing new bio-based chemicals from plants and waste streams
- The Advanced Analysis Centre: a facility for product analysis including food, biofuels, by-products, crops and nutraceuticals
The Seed Biobank and Biorefining Centre opened in the summer of 2019, allowing researchers and commercial partners to use these facilities while the rest of the catalyst’s facilities were under further construction. The Seed Biobank is one of only a handful of genebanks with associated quarantine facilities in the UK that can be used for imported plants that need observations and control to ensure they are free from pests and diseases. The remaining facilities opened in summer 2020.
Creating a research and innovation ecosystem
The close proximity of Aberystwyth university, IBERS and AberInnovation, plus housing complementary research facilities in one location, has built an ecosystem that:
- supports research and innovation from university departments and IBERS in the journey to market, providing the tools and technical expertise needed
- opens new opportunities for the local community as well as businesses, generating jobs to help bolster the local economy
- promotes the retention of skills and businesses within the UK and locally in Wales
Since its opening, 60% of AberInnovation tenants and members have collaborated with Aberystwyth University in some capacity. 93% of AberInnovation’s research and development projects have been supported by academic expertise from the university. This provides a rich opportunity for student involvement too.
Access to AberInnovation’s facilities enables newer businesses, who are often unable to afford expensive research equipment, to develop, test and validate their products. This helps companies bridge the gap between concept and commercialisation by enabling laboratory-scale testing and commercial-scale trials. The facilities also allow established companies to explore new avenues to their work by taking advantage of tools and knowledge within the campus ecosystem.
The campus provides a pipeline through which businesses can generate commercial impact from their products and services, supporting each stage of product development. To enhance this, AberInnovation is one of five UK Research and Innovation Campuses in receipt of a BBSRC Campus Innovation Award (CIA), which started in 2022. BBSRC funding through the CIA has supported AberInnovation’s Solutions Catalyst Programme, which provides businesses with access to AberInnovation’s facilities, equipment and technical support.
AberInnovation’s support success
In 2024, AberInnovation celebrated its fourth anniversary. It has achieved incredible success as an accelerator and has:
- delivered 106 product development projects
- hosted 23 businesses on-site and 45 virtual or associate memberships
- supported businesses in raising £12.7 million in grants and £10.6 million in equity investment
Tetrim Teas
Products developed with AberInnovation have already reached the market. One such success is the Rhubarb Root Tea developed by local startup Tetrim Teas.
Tetrim Teas wanted to use locally grown plants instead of imported ingredients to reduce the carbon footprint of teas while maintaining their beneficial properties. Tetrim Teas began to work with AberInnovation’s Food Centre and Aberystwyth University to analyse the ingredients and develop new blends. They used AberInnovation’s sensory booths and analysis suites to support product refinement and select the optimum final blend for their Rhubarb Root Tea.
The tea makes use of a by-product, the root rhubarb plants grown in Wales, making it a sustainable and local option. Clinical trials led by Aberystwyth University, with analytical support from AberInnovation, revealed that the rhubarb root tea helps with digestion and significantly reduced low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) levels. High LDL cholesterol can increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. The product was launched in 2023.
Mari Arthur, Owner of Tetrim Teas says:
The expertise gained from AberInnovation and Aberystwyth University was integral to achieving this milestone and exemplifies how collaboration between industry and academia can drive innovation, leading to impactful products that benefit both health and the local economy.
ARCITEKBio
Many of the companies AberInnovation has worked with have stemmed from IBERS. This includes ARCITEKBio Ltd, an Aberystwyth Univeristy spin-out specialising in producing xylitol, a natural sweetener, from up-cycled agricultural waste. ARCITEKBio set up its base at AberInnovation shortly after its opening and has remained there since, building its business and capabilities.
Dr Rhian Hayward MBE, CEO of AberInnovation says:
ARCITEKBio is the realisation of the partnership between IBERS and AberInnovation and typifies the translation of the very best agri-science developed on this site into products and services.
Using their technical expertise, AberInnovation’s infrastructure, IBERS’ technology, and funding support from the Welsh Government, ARCITEKBio have performed the first phase of scale-up trials for their proprietary EcoXyL fermentation process to produce product on a commercial scale.
Agxio and Techion
AberInnovation’s facilities have attracted a community of businesses at the forefront of innovation, so it is no surprise that separate businesses have begun to consider how they can come together to solve important issues.
In 2024, Agxio and Techion partnered to develop a greater understanding of the resistance of parasitic worms to treatments in farmed animals. This knowledge may be used to produce more effective management strategies for resistant species. The collaboration highlights the success of the catalyst in stimulating collaborative endeavours between businesses and demonstrates how this can be beneficial to solving important issues in the bioscience sector.
To the future
AberInnovation has matured to the point where UK government funding is supporting programmes that use the AberInnovation infrastructure to help startups and early-stage businesses.
The capabilities offered through AberInnovation have established Wales and the UK as a producer of high-quality and relevant bioscience outputs. AberInnovation is still in its infancy and will undoubtedly continue to yield success, in part fuelled by its close relationship with IBERS and Aberystwyth University. Together, AberInnovation, IBERS and Aberystwyth University form an ecosystem that supports research, innovation and commercial applications.
Professor Jon Timmis, Vice-Chancellor of Aberystwyth University, says:
AberInnovation has become the focus for a vibrant community of world-class scientific researchers and entrepreneurs to develop innovative products and services. Its ethos of innovation and collaboration will endure in the years ahead and make an enormous difference in tackling the problems facing us in the future.
Top image: Credit: AberInnovation