iFAB Tech Hub

Lead Agency: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign  

State Served: Illinois  

Geography: Champaign-Urbana and Decatur MSAs   

Core Technology Area: Precision fermentation and biomanufacturing  

Contact: Beth Conerty ([email protected])  

Media Contact: Taylor Meredith ([email protected])

Organizational Link: https://ifabtechhub.org/

The Illinois Fermentation and Agriculture Biomanufacturing Tech Hub (iFAB Tech Hub), led by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, seeks to scale precision fermentation to convert underutilized agricultural feedstocks into high-value, customized outputs, including: alternative proteins, food dyes and ingredients, advanced materials, chemicals and coatings, and more. By leveraging its regional assets in corn and soy feedstocks, food processing infrastructure, and research leadership, this Tech Hub will strengthen the nation’s domestic biomanufacturing supply chain through the design and deployment of multi-use pilot, demonstration, and commercial scale fermentation facilities for use by biomanufacturing innovators and firms.  

The iFAB Tech Hub seeks to advance fermentation technology by making it possible to create innovative, high-value products from agricultural commodities.   

EDA awarded this Tech Hub grant funding of approximately $51 million to:

• Upgrade and expand existing biomanufacturing facilities to allow for more companies to commercialize precision fermentation technologies and increase production capacity.