In the rush to take action many small businesses are missing the important element of creating a brand marketing strategy. Here’s how.

Public opinion on GMOs is often driven by misinformation and myths, despite scientific consensus that GMOs are safe to eat and nutritionally equivalent to their non-GMO counterparts. While some brands, like Campbell’s and Betty Crocker, have sought to educate consumers about GMOs rather than play into their fears, others are simply spreading confusion.

Many brands tout their products as non-GMO even when their products contain ingredients that couldn’t possibly contain GMOs to begin with.

To help stem the tide of dishonest labeling, GMO Answers developed a series highlighting products commonly labeled as non-GMO despite having no GMO alternatives. Orange juice, yogurt, microwave popcorn, and even pasta makers are all caving to pressure and misinforming the public.

Learn more about how companies are subjugating science and pushing misinformation in the name of “consumer demand” in a new Medium post from GMO Answers.

Marketers spend a lot of time trying to nail down abstract concepts. They’re tasked with turning brainstorming sessions and comments sourced during focus groups into campaigns that sum up everything about a brand’s identity in a neat, tidy, and most importantly, interesting way.

But what if a consumer could walk into a room and fully experience your brand with all their senses? Pop-up events offer just that — the chance for consumers to get up close and personal with their favorite companies in a truly immersive setting.

In their simplest form, pop-up events are temporary retail spaces that give companies the opportunity to sell their products in an environment completely designed and controlled by them. Since they’re temporary, they offer a relatively low-cost and low-commitment way for companies to take creative risks, generate buzz, and introduce their brands to new audiences.

Consumers love the lure of exclusivity, and brands love the unmatched opportunity for experimentation. To inspire your next branded experience, we’ve curated a list of 15 innovative and visually stunning pop-up events.

15 Examples of Next-Level Pop-Up Events

1) COS Los Angeles

Experimental architecture firm Snarkitecture was inspired by mirrored surfaces and simple silhouettes when designing this temporary retail space for LA-based fashion label COS. The folks at Snarkitecture transformed an empty industrial space into two identical, monochromatic rooms — one white and one pale pink — leaving the focus on two racks of minimal clothing. The reflected space “creates an unexpected and altered world for visitors to experience and share.“

Image Credit: Snarkitecture

2) BarkShop Live

Shouldn’t your dog be able to shop for his own toys? Bark & Co, the ecommerce company behind BarkBox, certainly thinks so. For one week in June 2016, the dog-centric retailer set up shop in Manhattan, inviting dogs and their owners to try out their squeaky, bouncy, and chewy offerings in-person. The lucky pups in attendance were fitted with RFID-enabled vests, which tracked the toys they played with the most. Owners were then able to view and purchase their dogs’ favorite playthings directly from the event’s custom mobile app.

Video from Digiday

3) Glossier Summer Fridays Showroom

In Summer 2015, online makeup and skincare brand Glossier styled a floor of its Manhattan headquarters as a temporary retail showroom — the closest thing to stepping into its beautifully curated Instagram feed. The space offered Glossier products for sale, but as founder Emily Weiss explained, selling tubes of moisturizer and lip balm wasn’t necessarily the pop-up’s top priority. “It’s not really just a store,” Weiss said in an interview with Racked. “It’s almost like this is a giant mood board for the company we’re hoping to build.”

Created under the direction of set designer Marguerite Wade, the penthouse featured custom floral arrangements by Meta Flora and an installation by multi-media artist Grace Villamil.

Image Credit: Glossier

4) Fast Food Aid

Creative directors Ikkyu and Junya Sato of Kaibutsu design studio noticed that young adults in Harajuku had a serious fast food problem — and they decided to do something about it. To promote organic food chain Dohtonbori, they launched Fast Food Aid, a pharmacy-inspired vitamin pop-up that offers a selection of health supplements aimed at junk food lovers. And all it will cost you is a receipt from a fast food place.

After a guilty indulgence, exchange your receipt for a customized bottle of supplements that will replenish the nutrients missed at your last meal. Each canister is aimed at a particular junk food — ramen, pizza, hamburger, etc., — to make sure your system gets what it needs.

Although Dohtonbori isn’t actually selling anything for profit at the shop, its been able to educate visitors about health and wellness, hopefully driving them to opt for healthier food options in the future — like Dohtonbori’s own restaurant.

Image Credit: Fast Food Aid

5) Pantone Café

What does color taste like? If anyone knows the answer to that question, it’s Pantone. The world’s most well-known color company has been running a pop-up café in Monaco for the past two summers, selling a minimal menu of pastries, lunch options, coffees, and fresh juices — all branded with Pantone’s signature color swatches.

So does this mean Pantone is permanently branching out into cuisine? Not quite. The seasonal eatery is perfect Instagram-bait, and it has successfully generated a ton of buzz in the press. It’s a perfect example of a pop-up event enabling a company to take creative risks with its brand by stepping outside of its typical business model.

Image Credit: Pantone Café

6) Real Life At Work

To offer passersby a glimpse into its world, London-based ad agency Wieden+Kennedy invited graphic artist Emily Forgot to transform the front window of its office into an imaginative, cartoon-inspired pop-up workspace. Using exaggerated monochrome imagery, Forgot crafted a whimsical office scene from paper, complete with a typewriter and a clock that ran backward.

For a few weeks, real agency employees took turns “working” in the window. The whole thing was then broadcast live via webcam on the agency’s website for anyone who was curious enough to watch. The pop-up was a unique way for W+K to shrug off the stereotype of the ad agency that takes itself too seriously — plus it was a creative chance for the team to engage with the community.

Image Credit: Wieden + Kennedy London

7) Früt

How do you make inexpensive, packaged underwear appeal to high-end consumers? Just create a “luxury” lingerie pop-up with a fake, fancy-sounding name. CP+B Boulder helped client Fruit of the Loom open up an intentionally pretentious and ludicrously over-priced boutique for its underwear, complete with colorful intimates hanging from over-the-top tree displays. Früt sold only Fruit of the Loom undergarments, but shoppers who usually wouldn’t deign to buy the brand were lured in by the high-end guise.

Image Credit: Wieden+Kennedy London

8) Organic Valley Coffee Shop

In a clever shot aimed at the artisanal coffee movement, creative branding agency Humanaut opened up a pop-up cafe to promote its client Organic Valley’s new coffee creamer. The temporary Manhattan storefront adhered to all of the typical hipster tropes — a minimal logo featuring arrows and X’s, modern glass mugs, and trendy sizes — Lil Bit, Double, and Lotta. And they cast a real Organic Valley farmer as the shop’s folksy proprietor.

There was one catch: The shop only sold measured portions of half-and-half. You ordered your creamer at the counter from a barista and added your coffee separately. The spoof was a major success. Unperturbed by the irony, New Yorkers lined up to order shots of plain cream for $2 a pop. “No one had a problem paying $2 for a pour of organic half-and-half,” said Humanaut’s creative chief David Littlejohn. “In the end, the idea wasn’t as crazy as we thought it was.”

Video Credit: Organic Valley

9) 5-Minute Internship

Solve, a Minneapolis-based creative agency, wanted to re-vamp its summer intern hiring process to attract recruits who can really think on their feet. So naturally, they created a portable, small-scale replica of their office — complete with a receptionist-staffed micro lobby — and set off on an epic college-campus road trip.

Students at participating campuses were given a 5-minute challenge based on their area of interest — and those who performed the best were invited to interview on the spot. The pop-up event tripled the amount of applications the agency received to its internship position.

Image Credit: Adweek

10) The Picture House

Capitalizing on the Instagram food photography craze, Birdseye opened up a temporary restaurant in London where diners could settle their bill with an Instagram post — all they had to do was take a snap of their meal and add the hashtag #BirdsEyeInspirations. The event was a creative social media experiment that helped generate free publicity for the frozen food company’s Inspirations line of products. Branding agency Slice was behind the world’s first pay-by-picture pop up.

Image Credit: Slice

11) The Period Shop

For one weekend, Kotex launched a pop-up in New York aimed at alleviating negativity and spreading love for women during their periods. The store, which was developed by ad agency Organic, featured ice cream, manicures, chocolate, comfy clothing, and Kotex U products for sale. Women were invited to browse the brightly colored offerings and share their experiences. And it was all for a good cause, too. Proceeds were donated to a women’s homeless shelter.

Image Credit: Adweek

12) Birchbox’s Tour

Pop-ups give online retailers the chance to show off their goods in person, interact directly with their fans, and take their brand to the next level. Birchbox — which sells subscription boxes of curated beauty products — went on a national tour in 2015, opening up temporary brick-and-mortar stores in multiple cities. In addition to selling beauty products, they offered manicures and astrology readings to entice beauty-lovers inside.

Image Credit: Racked LA

13) Fendi Spring/Summer 2016 Flower Shop

The mobile flower shop that botanical designer Azuma Makoto created for Fendi is proof that not all pop-ups need to be large scale productions. The artist adorned a three-wheeled Italian vehicle with an intricate floral display and outfitted the side of the truck as an open storefront. The vendor/driver sold limited edition Fendi bags and vases of Makoto’s floral arrangements to promote the fashion label’s 2016 Spring/Summer collection.

Image Credit: My Modern Met

14) Arnsdorf

What’s a designer to do when they’re facing a tight budget? Experiment with creative materials. This pop-up retail space for Australian clothier Arnsdorf was created by using 154 pairs of neutral-colored pantyhose, and the effect is otherworldly.

Image Credit: Fast Company

15) The Poundshop

This design collective is a recurring pop-up platform for artists to offer their goods for affordable prices. “The aim of The Poundshop is to spread design to a wider audience by making it accessible through price and engagement,” the website explains.

The pop-up shops are just as visually interesting as the art they sell.

Image Credit: The Poundshop 

This fall more than 200 biotech CEOs from 25 different countries will attend the 17^th Annual BIO Investor Forum (BIF) in San Francisco with the specific goal of connecting with partners to make the deals that drive our industry.  The premier event for emerging private and public companies, BIF will likely draw upwards of 300 qualified investors looking to forge long-lasting partnerships with potential to shape the future of healthcare.

Much of the event’s success can be traced to the seasoned group of Advisory Committee members-some of the best and brightest in the industry-who guide the program development by thoroughly evaluating proposed panel sessions, suggesting subject-matter expert speakers, nominating companies to present, and promoting the event to their vast networks.

This year’s list of 27 advisors are actively engaged in the latest breakthroughs of the industry. Half of the group are female reflecting BIO’s mission to promote workforce development, diversity and inclusion. Working with BIO staff, the committee will recruit nearly 200 of the hottest start-ups and emerging companies to give 15-minute presentations (last year’s list of presenters can be found here).  To round out BIF programming, the committee seeks to get the pulse on the latest life science investment trends from sophisticated and active early-stage investment and company executives to develop a dozen candid panel discussions with leading clinical experts and investigators with insights on pipeline research and clinical practice.

The positive investment climate bodes well for this year’s conference. As the biopharma industry has gained traction on new drug approvals through Q2 2018, the financial dollars have followed suit.  According to BioWorld Insight, at this point in 2017 the biotech industry had raised $19.1 billion from public and private offerings.  In 2018, that figure has more than doubled to $39.2 billion.  With 20 new molecular entities (NMEs) approved, the industry in on pace to match last year’s high mark of 46 approvals, a number that hasn’t been seen since 1996 when 53 new medicines were approved.  The transactional value of deals signed in 2018 has also climbed nearly 50 percent higher to $49 billion, compared with the $33 billion from last year.  Oncology, specifically the early-stage pipeline, continues to have a strong presence with biopharma companies with 30 percent of partnerships in Q2 involving cancer-focused developments.

Partnerships remain a vital option for companies looking to mitigate risk with small up-front payments and profitable downstream successes due to the volatility of the current administration and the subsequent financial climate.  However, while the value of biopharma deals has climbed sharply through Q2 2018, the volume of deals is down almost 10 percent (615 in 2017; 554 in 2018).  This means that while more financial capital is flowing into the biopharma industry, it is being spread over fewer clinical indications, making it even more imperative for investors to find the right corporate partners for deal success.  This is where the BIO Investor Forum comes in.

BIO meticulously reviews the qualifications of each company and investor to ensure high-quality interactions during the two-day event. These reviews, for example on the investor-side, begin with the foundation of a comprehensive investor policy that involves assessing the organization type, position title, value of assets under management in the industry, and even specific deals within their respective life science portfolios.  This year’s event will attract investors from over 50 funds with more than $1B assets under management; over 120 funds specializing in Angel/Series A placements; and over 20 funds from outside the U.S. While a complete 2018 list is not available yet, this 2017 list is an indication of the exceptional talent participating in the event.

Attendees can take advantage of BIO’s One-on-One Partnering™ system to connect to the right people at the event. It schedules meetings that might otherwise take weeks to arrange. Last year 2,760 individual meetings were held over two days.  Participants can search company and investor profiles, evaluate potential collaborations and funding opportunities with participating companies, communicate directly with prospective investors and senior business and scientific management, and pre-schedule private business development meetings.

Ultimately, all this tireless effort for a unique event is designed to accelerate growth within the biopharma industry, catering to entities early in their lifecycle and stakeholders looking to support them and get more innovative treatments to helping patients sooner. Qualified investors attend for free.

Writing last week for Morning Consult, BIO President and CEO Jim Greenwood proposed several policy ideas for Washington lawmakers to consider as they look to further reform America’s tax code.

Our nation’s life sciences industry is thriving but other countries are adopting policies designed to attract biotechnology firms to their shores, and as a result, the U.S. is losing some of its competitive advantage. In fact, as shown in a recent report commissioned by the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, American innovation has slowed in recent years as other countries have developed policies to encourage innovation abroad.

“Foreign nations are competing aggressively to attract more life sciences investment, including through tax incentives such as “patent boxes” (which tax patent revenues more favorably than other sources of commercial revenue), regulatory reforms to speed up drug approvals, and workforce and immigration policies designed to attract and educate top talent in the life sciences field,” Greenwood warns.

Luckily, the ball is in our court. With Congress signaling that another round of changes to the tax code is in the works, adopting relatively simple changes can help cement U.S. leadership in the biosciences for generations to come.  Here’s a sample of what BIO recommends:

• Reforming Section 382 of the tax code to help small biotechs further invest in the growth of their companies;
• Simplifying Section 1202 of the tax code to encourage investment in innovative breakthroughs; and
• Enabling more innovative startups to benefit from the payroll R&D credit in Section 41 of the Tax Code.

Read the full op-ed in Morning Consult here, and check out BIO’s recent letter to tax writers in the U.S. House of Representatives for a deeper dive on this important issue.

There’s a huge opportunity to improve agriculture with gene editing. But we need to give CRISPR a chance, writes Tamar Haspel in Vox.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine last week released a report on how to address the most pressing problems of American agriculture. The list of those problems is long and scary: climate change, food waste, water scarcity, food-borne illness, pests, and disease.

The report identifies five scientific tools to improve sustainability and resilience, and four of them are pretty uncontroversial: understanding soil microbes, deploying sensors, integrating systems, and managing data. The fifth is gene editing. If the past is a predictor, that one will raise hackles. Nothing in agriculture is as divisive as a modified genome.

But does the past have to be a predictor? Is it possible that new gene editing techniques like CRISPR – along with new applications, new players, and a new way of talking with the public – give science the chance to press the reset button on genetic modification?

We can argue about the impact of the genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, already in our system, modified to be toxic to insects, resistant to herbicides, or both. It’s been a mixed bag, with decreases in insecticide and our most toxic herbicides on the plus side, and an increase in herbicide-tolerant weeds on the minus side.

But the argument against GMOs has never been just about the GMOs themselves. It is about a corporate-dominated, industrialized food system that’s focused on animal feed, processed foods, and biofuels and insufficiently attentive to soil health, environmental degradation, and biodiversity. GMOs have been a convenient handhold on a big, slippery problem. Enter CRISPR, a powerful new gene editing tool that’s everything GMOs aren’t.

Haspel explains: “For one, CRISPR is academic where GMO is corporate…It’s also transparent where GMO is opaque…It’s cheap where GMO is expensive…It’s accessible where GMO is proprietary.”

CRISPR may not win minds and hearts overnight, and we still have much to study and learn about it. But here’s hoping that transparency, community involvement, and applications in the public interest will bring gene editing skeptics to the table – disbelief at least temporarily suspended – to give it a chance.

Each year, the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) holds their annual meeting and expo.  Since 1939, IFT has been bringing the most creative minds in the science of food and technology together to collaborate, learn, and contribute, all with the goal of inspiring and transforming collective scientific knowledge into innovative solutions for the benefit of all people around the world. IFT’s annual event and Food Expo is an excellent way to be one of the first to see some of the latest advancements and innovations in the science of food. Leading researchers and industry representatives come to IFT’s annual event to share their discoveries and soon to be released products. This year, more than 23,000 attendees were in Chicago to take in the educational sessions, networking opportunities, and walk the exhibit hall.

GMO Answers was there to talk to meeting attendees, including food scientists, buyers, food company executives, and students about GMOs. We also attended several sessions, including “The Clash Between Consumer Demands and Responsible Food” and “Embracing Agricultural Coexistence: Organic, Conventional, and Biotechnology.”

GMO Answers volunteer expert and farmer Katie Pratt held a Facebook Live chat during the show to talk about her three top takeaways:

1. Food scientists overwhelmingly support GMO technologies and are looking for tools to be able to talk to the public about them.
2. There is a disconnect between food scientists, nutritionists, dietitians on the R&D side of food companies and the marketing side, who are much more driven by trends and perceived consumer demand.
3. Ultimately, farmers, scientists, and food companies all want the same thing: to provide healthy, safe, and affordable food to all.

Check out Katie’s Facebook Live to learn more about our experience at #IFT18.

The last day of the 2018 BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology wrapped up Thursday, July 19, with a half-day of programming and partnering, packed with breakout sessions, company and technical presentations, a lunch plenary and the announcement of the third annual Leadership and Legacy Award in Industrial Biotechnology and Agriculture recipient.

The BIO World Congress continues to be the largest industrial biotechnology conference in the world, and this year’s event included 44 percent attendance from outside the United States. In addition, more than 100 companies descended on Philadelphia for the event.

Leadership and Legacy Award in Industrial Biotechnology and Agriculture

Dr. Larry Walker, co-editor and chief of the journal “Industrial Biotechnology,” was honored as the recipient of the Leadership and Legacy Award during the lunch plenary session. The award is presented to an individual who has shown exemplary leadership and who has dedicated a significant portion of their career to advancing industrial biotechnology and growing the biobased economy.

In accepting the award, Dr. Walker reflected on his time as an academic, studying and working closely with several American universities and noted the industry’s influence on his success.

“You folks have had a big impact on how I think about innovation, probably more so than my academic colleagues, probably because you’re out there doing it,” said Dr. Walker to the crowd. “It’s the people here that has had a major impact.”

Industrial Biotechnology Innovation for Ag Feedstock Production Applications Plenary

Following the award presentation, attendees heard from a collection of experts during the “Industrial Biotechnology Innovation for Ag Feedstock Production Applications” plenary session.

During the plenary, each panelist discussed their company’s innovations and efforts in industrial biotechnology. The panel included representatives from agricultural and environment companies as well as Jenny Rooke with Genoa Ventures, a company that invests in early-stage companies innovating at the intersection of biology and technology.

Rooke summed up the conference best when noting “It’s a really exciting time to be working in industrial biotechnology.”

Breakout Sessions, Company and Technical Presentations, Raffles and more

And even though Thursday was technically a half-day, programming was not lacking. Attendees continued to take in breakout sessions and company and technical presentations.

From discussions about the overall biobased economy, to microbial solutions to advance agriculture sustainability, to renewable chemicals and synthetic biology, Thursday’s breakout sessions again included something for anyone working in industrial biotechnology.

During company and technical presentations, Andy Renz of Vestaron presented on his company’s peptide-based biopesticides. Comparing his company’s technology to current synthetic and microbial forms, Renz noted that Vestaron’s biopesticide is scalable, efficient, low-cost and safe, and be an alternative to chemical insecticides, which has faced significant market challenges.

And as part of the last day of the BIO World Congress, Chris Smith of Gevo, Inc. was announced as the winner of the Feedback Raffle and went home with a new Fitbit.

Overall, there were over 70 programming sessions, including 28 breakout sessions across seven tracks, more than 20 poster presentations, 10 GreenTech Investor Sessions and four sponsored workshops. Additionally, there were 60 company and technical presentations, with many presentations standing room only.

BIO looks forward to seeing this year’s attendees at the 2019 BIO World Congress in Des Moines, Iowa, July 8-11, 2019. For more information, visit http://www.bio.org/worldcongress/IOWA19.

At the start of the second day of programming at the 2018 BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, attendees took in a breakfast plenary discussion as panelists explored biobased materials and how biobased innovations are redesigning markets and fashion trends.

At a conference where biofuels, enzymes, proteins and industrial processes take center stage, some attendees may have been questioning the role industrial biotechnology has in fashion.

However, as moderator Jim Lane, editor of The Digest, emphasized throughout the discussion “there is something here for you.”

Lane comments became the unofficial theme for the day. From workshops designed to help companies grow, a lunch plenary that reflected on World Congress attendee’s contributions to the biobased economy over the past 15 years – while honoring two leaders in industrial biotechnology – and breakout sessions that featured unique topics such as whiskey, Tuesday’s programming was jam packed with unique programming for anyone in industrial biotechnology.

Biobased Materials Redesigning Consumer Markets and Fashion Trends

After reassuring the crowd that industrial biotechnology DOES have a role in fashion, Lane turned over the discussion to experts from several companies that are spearheading biobased threads.

Understanding consumers’ desires for sustainably manufactured products, Christophe Schilling with Genomatica, Inc. dived into his company’s efforts in using recyclable materials to build a circular economy. The segment of the population seeking biobased products is so significant, companies like AMSilk and Okabashi Brands have made it a central focus in their product lines.

“We built the entire brand to go after the demographic that is sustainability focused,” said Kimberly Falkenhayn, President of Okabashi Brands, a company that has been designing and manufacturing flip-flops for more than 30 years.

AMSilk‘s Managing Director and CEO Jens Klein then went on to highlight his company’s work in developing BIOSteel, a strong, durable fiber derived from spider silk that has been used in the production of shoes for Adidas.

Industrial Biotech Thought Leaders: Winners of the George Washington Carver and Rosalind Franklin Awards

As attendees dined in the Grand Ballroom for lunch, the second plenary session of the day kicked off with Dr. Sang Yup Lee from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Krysta Harden, vice president of external affairs and chief sustainability officer at Corteva Agriscience™, receiving the George Washington Carver and Rosalind Franklin Awards, respectively.

In accepting the George Washington Carver Award for Innovation in Industrial Biotechnology and Agricultue, Dr. Lee made sure to give credit to his team of researchers and students back in Korea, who played a critical role pioneering systems metabolic engineering. Dr. Lee left attendees with encouraging words on the overall impact teams like his can have on driving sustainability.

“The achievements our group made is very small,” he noted. “However, if we add up all the achievement you all have made, I can clearly say we are changing the world by providing sustainable chemicals and energy.”

Krysta Harden also had encouraging words for attendees when accepting the Rosalind Franklin Award for Leadership in Industrial Biotechnology and Agriculture by highlighting the progress that has taken place in the last decade in acknowledging the role of women in science – or any field. Harden noted work is still needed for women to receive the same credit as men and dedicated the Rosalind Franklin Award to all women making a difference in their fields.

“This is a great honor for all the women – whether in labs, classrooms, offices or boardrooms – who are making a difference for all of us,” said Harden.

Following the award presentation, award winners joined a group of panelists as they reflected on the past 15 years of industrial biotechnology and the evolution of the biobased economy and looked ahead to what the future may hold.

The Rosalind Franklin Award is sponsored by the Rosalind Franklin Society and the George Washington Carver Award is sponsored by the Iowa Biotechnology Association.

Breakout Sessions

Following the plenary lunch discussion, attendees explored both the exhibit floor and several breakout sessions covering feedstocks for biofuels, whiskey and much more.

At the session “Development of Biorefinery Projects to Convert Forestry Residues to Renewable Fuels,” Phillipp Stratmann spoke on behalf of Velocys, a UK-based renewable fuels company. Velocys is currently developing its first biorefinery using forestry residues as feedstock in Natchez, Mississippi.

“Our process uses 300,000 tons of non-recyclable waste that would otherwise go into landfills,” Stratmann stated. “And for every dollar of feedstock, we’re generating more than $8.00 in fuel revenue.”

Later during the “Nutrigenomics:  Bridging the Gap between Agriculture and Health” breakout session, Fayaz Khazi, CEO of Elo Life Systems talked about how his company is working in partnership with Cargill and other companies to enhance the nutritional profile of agriculture products.

By precisely targeting improvements to food crops, Elo is reducing saturated fat in canola oil, developing protein-rich chickpeas and producing low-calorie natural sweeteners, among other innovations. Representing a One Health mission, Khazi says “it’s really about improving health and wellness through food.”

And as the clock ticked closer and closer to reception time, attendees took in a discussion on the distilling of whiskey and the additional benefits that can be had through the proteins leftover in “pot ale,” the residue left behind in the distillation of whiskey or alcohol.

Workshops & Company and Technical Presentations

In between the breakfast and lunch plenaries, BIO World Congress attendees had the opportunity to attend four sponsored workshops, each outlining a program that could help attendee’s grow their companies.

BIO’s Managing Director of its Industrial and Environmental Section, Rina Singh, participated in a discussion on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) BioPreferred Program, whose goal is to increase the purchase and use of biobased products. Singh provided great context to attendees on the origins of the BioPreferred Program and BIO’s continued commitment and efforts to secure funding for the program through legislation.

Most notably, however, panelists dedicated significant time for attendees to provide feedback and ask questions to USDA representatives on improvements or considerations for the BioPreferred Program.

Of course, as is the case throughout the week, attendees looking to learn about the latest innovations in industrial biotechnology could visit company and technical presentations for an intimate experience with company representatives as they highlighted their new breakthroughs and answered questions.  

Cargill‘s Vice President of Industrials Jill Zullo spoke to a packed room about the company’s successes in replacing petroleum-based products with sustainable bio-industrial systems made from renewable resources. As an example, Zullo pointed to its Cargill Beauty portfolio, a unique range of nature-derived, skin-friendly products with various personal care applications.

“We ask ‘what problems are consumers facing?’ and ‘how are those problems changing in today’s market place,” said Zullo. She went on to note Cargill’s innovations are really focused on “the new natural” to meet evolving consumer demands. But such innovations can’t be created in a vacuum she warns. “No one company can do this alone, so it’s really about partnerships.”

Attendees can look forward to another day of exciting programming tomorrow, Thursday, July 19, as the 2018 BIO World Congress comes to a close.

For those attending the 2018 BIO World Congress in Philadelphia, be sure to be on the lookout for the Iowa Biotechnology Association booth next to registration, where you can learn more about the 2019 BIO World Congress in Iowa. We look forward to seeing you in Des Moines!

Programming for the 15^th BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology kicked off on Tuesday, July 17 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia.

BIO’s President and CEO Jim Greenwood provided welcoming remarks ahead of the lunch plenary session, highlighting the growth of the biobased economy and BIO’s commitment to fostering innovation in industrial biotechnology.

“I’ve been BIO CEO for more than 13 years, and it has been amazing to see World Congress grow into the biggest showcase of industrial biotech in the world,” said Greenwood.

And the showcase began early, as breakout sessions started at 8:30 a.m. and ran throughout the day.

Breakout Sessions

The breakout sessions gave a glimpse into the not-so-often talked about intersection of biotechnology and industrial and environment. From advancements in the food industry, including flavors and fragrances, algae and enzymes, to industrial biotechnology investments in South America, to biobased products and renewable chemicals, Tuesday’s breakout sessions covered a range of new innovations.

During the “Bio-Industrial Investment in South America” breakout session, panelists looked at the investment climate and national support for bio-industrial solutions in Uruguay. Hank Krakowski with Agrisoma described his company’s work with carinata in the region, an oilseed crop grown to produce renewable, sustainable source of oil, which can be refined into diesel and jet fuel, and a high protein meal for animal feed.

At the “Renewable Chemicals Making Headway into New Materials and Consumer Biobased Products” breakout session, panelists showcased their companies work in developing renewable chemicals that can then be used in partnerships with companies making biobased consumer products. David Sudolsky of Annellotech touched on his companies four guiding principles in partnering on the development of biobased products, including that the product must result in a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, be accessible to large, global markets, and must be reliable and cost effective.

In the “Emergence & Commercialization of Next Generation Ingredients in F&F and other Markets” breakout session, representatives from biotech companies Amyris, Conagen Inc., DEINOVE and Evolva described how biotechnologies such as synthetic biology, advanced fermentation and bioconversion technologies are used by their companies in the development of unique products such as natural sweeteners, cosmetics and skin care – even pest control. And in each of the case studies, speakers emphasized the need to address consumers’ increasing demand for products that are natural and sustainably produced.

To provide for a growing population, “we will need 2.3 planet earths by 2050,” explained Kathy Oglesby of Amyris, which provides more than 2,000 brand products to 250 million consumers every day. “But we only have one planet Earth – biotechnology offers the solution.”

From flavors and fragrances, breakout sessions continued to focus on the trends in production of consumer products, including algae and enzymes for food.

In the “Advancements in Industrial Production of Food Enzymes and Ingredients from New Microbial Platforms” session, panelists examined the bio-processes involved in the manufacturing of novel food ingredients and flavorings.

Henrik Busch-Larsen, CEO of Danish biotechnology company Unibio, explained the conversion of methane and natural gas into protein-based feed additives for livestock. “We’re turning fuel into food, rather than food into fuel,” Busch-Larsen says.

Unibio’s Uniprotein® is produced in an eco-friendly way and is part of the company’s mission to supply the world with innovative, sustainable solutions to overcome the food challenge faced by a growing global population. Watch this video to learn more!

Matt Carr with the Algae Biomass Organization opened the “Algae: A Top Food Trend Today, Potential for Food Security for Tomorrow?” breakout session saying about the intersection of algae and food: “We’ll tell the story to anyone that will listen.” Carr and other panelists went on to highlight the various opportunities for algae in food production, a new trend for the plant that was previously only thought of to advance agriculture and fuel production.

Panelist Jill Kaufman Johnson with Corbion expanded, noting the increasing demand for plant-based protein and the role algae can have. Her lab developed an algae-based goldfish snack that resulted in 30 percent less sodium, 35% less flour and, because of the cell wall that encapsulates the protein, it prevents the cracker from becoming soggy and preserves its “crispiness”.

GreenTech Investor Sessions

Also taking place Tuesday at the BIO World Congress, were GreenTech Investor Sessions, where early stage industrial biotechnology companies had the opportunity to present in front of potential investors and strategists. Included in the GreenTech Investor Sessions were panel discussions in which expert investors and strategists discussed the opportunities and challenges of investing in the industry.

In summarizing the current investment climate, BIO Industrial and Environmental Board Member, and panel moderator, Roger Wyse with Spruce Capital Partners alluded to the challenges the industry has faced as promising technologies have come and gone: “The industry has been through a lot of trauma.”

Underlining previous challenges, Ganesh Kishore, also with Spruce Capital Partners, highlighted the desire of investors to fund companies that make products that are “adaptable” to ensure commercial success.

CRISPR and Gene Editing Tools to Advance Industrial Biotechnology Plenary

Roger Wyse also moderated the lunch plenary on “CRISPR and Gene Editing Tools to Advance Industrial Biotechnology,” featuring a collection of experts and company representatives discussing the future of gene editing technologies.

Most notably, panelists emphasized the need for customer acceptance to allow gene editing to continue progressing and continue to strengthen the biobased economy.

“It’s not rocket science, it’s social science,” said J.J. Jones of Roots & Legacies Consulting during the plenary panel discussion. “Don’t ask ‘what can we do?’ Ask ‘what should we do?”.

Panelist and SR Strategy’s President Sylvia Rowe added that transparency is key. “Transparency is the gateway to trust,” she said. “We’re talking about building a foundation of trust. I think there is a real opportunity to proactively take control of the dialogue.”

Company and Technical Presentations

And not to be missed in the flurry of breakout sessions, investor panels and plenary lunches were company and technical presentations. Several companies presented during Tuesday’s schedule, including Hideyuki Tsukii from Advanced Biochemical Co. in Thailand.

Tsukii presented on his company’s 100 percent bio-based epichlorohydrin (EPI), which when combined with a bio-based BPA will lead to bio-based epoxy resins. During his presentation, Tuskii outlined the benefits of bio-based EPI which is the most sustainable EPI in terms of CO₂ emissions and process environmental performance, and enables downstream industries to reduce its carbon footprint, while increasing the bio-content of finished products.

Read more about Thailand’s presence at the 2018 BIO World Congress here.

With day one in the books, attendees can look forward to even more programming on Wednesday, July 18, with sessions focused on biobased materials, biofuels and the announcement of the 2018 George Washington Carver and Rosalind Franklin Award recipients.

For those attending the 2018 BIO World Congress in Philadelphia, be sure to be on the lookout for the Iowa Biotechnology Association booth next to registration, where you can learn more about the 2019 BIO World Congress in Iowa. We look forward to seeing you in Des Moines!