TIDMANIC
Agronomics Limited
12 April 2023
12.00pm 12th April 2023
Agronomics Limited
("Agronomics" or the "Company")
Liberation Labs Secures $30 Million in Equipment Funding for
First Biomanufacturing Facility
Agronomics (ANIC:LSE), the leading listed company focused on the
field of cellular agriculture, is pleased to announce that
Liberation Labs Holdings Inc ("Liberation Labs"), the large-scale
precision fermentation contract manufacturer, has secured $30
million in equipment funding for the first dedicated,
purpose-built, commercial precision fermentation plant globally for
food production.
The Company has invested a total of US $7.63 million since
Liberation Labs' inception, which is currently carried at US
$25.4m, with this accounting for approximately 11.4% of the last
published Net Asset Value of Agronomics (31.12.22). Agronomics has
an equity ownership of 37.4% on a fully diluted basis in Liberation
Labs.
The full announcement is set out below without any material
changes:
Funding advances project development for a new facility that
will be the first purpose-built commercial precision fermentation
plant in the United States.
RICHMOND, Ind. (Embargo until April 12, 2023) Liberation Labs ,
industrial biotech's fabrication partner, has secured $30 million
in equipment financing to advance development of its first
commercial-scale biomanufacturing facility in Richmond, Indiana.
The new facility will have a fermentation capacity of 600,000
liters with a fully dedicated downstream process (DSP). Ground
breaking is expected in June 2023 with initial plant startup by the
end of 2024.
Liberation Labs is focused on enabling the commercial
availability of bioproducts that will meet the growing demand from
existing major CPG and ingredient brands as well as from the
emerging crop of precision fermentation-focused startups. The new
facility will be the first purpose-built commercial-scale precision
fermentation plant in the United States. The company has commenced
the detailed design engineering phase and has placed orders for all
of the major engineered equipment, including its 150,000 litre
fermenters and DSP separation and drying units, all while
continuing to build out the engineering and operations teams.
"This new financing, combined with our seed raise, allows us to
not only secure all the needed equipment, but also to continue
investing in our team to move the overall project forward at
speed,"
said Mark Warner, co-founder and CEO of Liberation Labs.
"Traditionally it is challenging to secure this kind of financing
for a first-of-a-kind facility, but this lease reflects the belief
in our vision and strong team by our committed equity and equipment
finance investors."
The facility comes at a time of increasing focus on both the
importance of a domestic biorefining industry, and the current lack
of major projects. In September 2022, President Biden launched a
National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative designed to
stimulate development and create domestic jobs, build stronger
supply chains, lower costs for Americans. The new facility, the
first in the US fully dedicated to novel bioproducts, could
catalyze market demand, commercializing innovation among food,
chemical and materials biotechnology companies and their associated
economic, health and environmental benefits.
About Liberation Labs
Liberation Labs is commercialising precision fermentation with a
global network of purpose-built, international manufacturing
facilities that enable the next wave of biotechnology advancements
to produce bio-based consumer products at scale. We combine modern
technology with fit-for-purpose design to bring reliable and
cost-effective solutions that meet customer demand across the
world. More information is available at www.liberationlabs.com
.
Media Contact
John Williams, Scoville PR for Liberation Labs
+1-206-660-5503, jwilliams@scovillepr.com
About Agronomics
Agronomics is a leading listed alternative proteins company with
a focus on cellular agriculture and cultivated meat. The Company
has established a portfolio of over 20 companies in this rapidly
advancing sector. It seeks to secure minority stakes in companies
owning technologies with defensible intellectual property that
offer new ways of producing food and materials with a focus on
products historically derived from animals. These technologies are
driving a major disruption in agriculture, offering solutions to
improve sustainability, as well as addressing human health, animal
welfare and environmental damage. This disruption will decouple
supply chains from the environment and animals and be fundamental
to feeding the world's expanding population. A full list of
Agronomics' portfolio companies is available at
https://agronomics.im/.
About Cellular Agriculture
Cellular Agriculture is the production of agriculture products
directly from cells, as opposed to raising an animal for slaughter
or growing crops. This encompasses cell culture to produce
cultivated meat and materials, and fermentation processes that
harness a combination of molecular biology, synthetic biology,
tissue engineering and biotechnology to massively simplify
production methods in a sustainable manner.
Over the coming decades, the source of the world's food supply
traditionally derived from conventional agriculture is going to
change dramatically. We have already witnessed the first wave of
this shift with the consumer adoption of plant-based alternative
proteins but today, we are on the cusp of an even bigger wave of
change. This is being facilitated by advances in cellular
agriculture. This change is necessary, given scientists' claims
that if we maintain existing animal protein consumption patterns,
then we will not meet the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting
warming to 1.5 .
AT Kearney, a global consultancy firm, projects that cultivated
meat's market share will reach 35% by 2040. This combined with the
Good Food Institute's estimate that a US $1.8 trillion investment
will be required in order to produce just 10% of the world's
protein using this technology, means that we are on the cusp of a
multi-decade flow of capital to build out manufacturing facilities.
Funding in the field of cellular agriculture is accelerating,
however, still less than US$ 5 billion has been invested worldwide
since the industry's inception in 2016.
For further information please contact:
Agronomics Beaumont Canaccord Cenkos Peterhouse
Limited Cornish Genuity Securities Capital TB Cardew
Limited Limited Plc Limited
The Company Nomad Joint Broker Joint Broker Joint Broker Public Relations
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Richard Roland Andrew Giles Balleny Lucy Williams Ed Orlebar
Reed Cornish Potts Max Gould Charles Alistair Walker
Denham Eke James Harry Rees Michael Goodfellow
Biddle Alex Aylen Johnson
(Head of
Equities)
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info@agronomics.im 3396 8000 8900 0936 agronomics@tbcardew.com
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