ÄIO and TFTAK Win €1.94M Grant to Build Digital Platform for Microbial Oil Production

Estonian biotechnology company ÄIO and research organisation TFTAK have received a €1.94 million grant to develop a digital platform for microbial oil production. The project, DigiFoundry 2.0 (DF2.0), aims to reduce costs and streamline the production process of fermentation-derived oils and fats. Building upon the success of their previous project, DF2.0 will integrate biology, fermentation, automation, and digital process control to make microbial oil production sustainable, efficient, and economically competitive at an industrial scale.

ÄIO specializes in converting side-streams from various industries into oils and fats as alternatives to tropical oils and animal fats. With applications in cosmetics and food, their process significantly reduces land use and water consumption compared to conventional methods. TFTAK, another key player in the project, will focus on connecting strain engineering to automated production and leveraging advanced biology and intelligent process development to optimize the production cycle. Overall, the aim of DF2.0 is to transform side-streams into the oils of the future, utilizing biotechnology to unlock the potential of local industrial waste resources.