iPROOF facility aims to bridge biotech's valley of death. Image credit: Primient. US corn wet miller and biomanufacturing expert Primient is preparing to open a precision fermentation scale-up facility in Decatur, Illinois, next May, enabling startups and established companies to validate their tech and economics before moving to commercial-scale manufacturing. The iPROOF site (Illinois Pilot Research and Operations Optimization Facility), will feature fermenters ranging from 1,200 to 10,000 liters alongside flexible downstream processing equipment, with dedicated staff operating around the clock. While wholly owned by Primient and located on its Decatur campus, iPROOF will operate as a separate legal entity with its own management and staff, Tim Fowler, general manager at Primient's biosolutions business, told AgFunderNews. "iPROOF will operate as an independent, neutral resource that's open to innovators, startups, research organizations, and established companies." Best characterized as a "CDMO plus" operation, iPROOF will operate on a fee-for-service basis, although the company is also open to longer-term strategic partnerships, he explained. "Startups using iPROOF can basically pay rent, but they don't have to buy a house. And they don't necessarily have to become customers of Primient." Why it matters. While the US has a thriving biotech research ecosystem, it lacks infrastructure to help companies move from the lab to a commercially viable manufacturing process, claimed Fowler. "The US does not have a problem with the scientific side of the innovation. Where we have the bigger problem right now, in my view, is on commercialization." The industry's notorious "valley of death" between lab and commercial-scale production is a combination of three problems, he argued. First, technical problems that aren't apparent at smaller scales can emerge as bioreactor sizes increase. Second, companies need to validate their production costs at meaningful scale to determine whether their business models stack up. Third, investors are increasingly unwilling to fund the infrastructure needed to resolve those uncertainties. "You might be able to get through one of those two problems, but when all three exist in the same space... you have a big problem." At the 10,000-liter scale, firms working with iPROOF can generate more reliable process and cost data, while also producing sufficient quantities of product for customer sampling, he said. Downstream processing. One distinguishing feature of iPROOF, according to Fowler, will be its downstream processing capabilities, backed by Primient's decades of industrial manufacturing experience. Many startups spend the majority of their time upstream on strain development and yield optimization, partly because it's difficult to produce enough material at lab scale to validate the downstream recovery and purification process. As a result, they may discover relatively late in the development process that downstream operations present substantial technical or economic challenges, claimed Fowler. iPROOF has been designed with interchangeable downstream equipment, enabling customers to experiment with different tech without committing prematurely to one approach. "You can almost plug and play. So I can wheel one unit out, wheel the other one in, plug it in and try a different approach." The aim is to optimize upstream and downstream processing concurrently, rather than maximizing upstream yields only to discover that the resulting product is prohibitively expensive to recover, he said. "We can help them create a scalable downstream process because we've got decades of industrial scale manufacturing experience." From 10,000 to 200,000 liters? While iPROOF is designed to help firms reach the point where they can demonstrate commercial viability, Primient could also support the next stage of their manufacturing journey, said Fowler. Formed in 2022 after Tate & Lyle sold a controlling stake in its Primary Products business to private equity firm KPS Capital Partners, Primient draws on more than a century of corn wet milling expertise, producing sweeteners, starches, acidulants and other corn-derived ingredients. Alongside its core ingredients operations, Primient has an established biomanufacturing business producing citric acid and bio-based propanediol and has created a dedicated biosolutions division to pursue new opportunities. Its Decatur campus already houses a fermentation facility, known as Building 99, which could potentially be brought back into operation with additional investment, said Fowler. "There's a fermentation facility ready to go... It's got walls. It's got power, equipment. Call that a fast start opportunity for someone who's looking to scale quickly." Primient also has land, utilities and access to corn-derived feedstocks at its industrial sites in Lafayette, Indiana, and Loudon, Tennessee, offering opportunities for companies to build or co-locate their own facilities, he said. Where are the commercial opportunities? While iPROOF is open to companies working across a broad range of bioproducts, Primient is particularly interested in higher-value renewable chemicals, biopolymers, surfactants, specialty chemicals and molecules such as polyunsaturated fatty acids and terpenes for flavors and fragrances. Fowler also sees opportunities in food ingredients such as dairy proteins and ag biologicals. According to Fowler, Primient evaluates potential opportunities through three lenses: market size, margin potential and growth; technical and commercial maturity; and compatibility with its existing assets and expertise. The latter is key to the CDMO-plus concept, he said, "If I'm a biotech innovator, I also want to make sure that my partner has commercial expertise. "Not because Primient would necessarily sell the products, but because a partner who's been selling bioproducts for a long time is probably a more value-added partner, I would argue, than a CDMO that might understand the manufacturing side but doesn't really understand all the rest of the challenges a biotech innovator is going to face." Further reading:

Safic-Alcan and Primient expand their partnership into Central and Eastern Europe with the ZEMEA(R) propanediol range. Published on July 29, 2026 Building on an established collaboration in Brazil, Safic-Alcan and Primient extend their relationship to a new territory - bringing 100% bio-based ZEMEA(R) propanediol to formulators across the DACH region and Central and Eastern Europe. Paris-La Defense, July 29, 2026 - Safic-Alcan, a leading global specialty chemicals distributor, and Primient, the world's largest producer of 100% bio-based 1,3-propanediol, have signed a distribution agreement for the ZEMEA(R) propanediol range across Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Slovenia. The agreement began in June 2026. Under the agreement, Safic-Alcan becomes the regional distributor for ZEMEA(R) propanediol, serving cosmetics and personal care formulators. The partnership pairs Primient's bio-based ingredient platform with Safic-Alcan's local technical and commercial network across 10 European markets, giving regional customers direct access to formulation support, regulatory documentation and supply. ZEMEA(R) propanediol is a 100% bio-based, plant-derived alternative to petroleum-derived glycols such as propylene glycol and butylene glycol. Produced from regeneratively grown industrial dent corn in the Midwestern United States, it is a multifunctional ingredient that functions as a humectant, emollient, preservative booster, solvent, viscosity enhancer, and carrier for active ingredients and botanical extracts. It is certified 100% biobased under the USDA BioPreferred(R) Program, recognized by the Natural Products Association, and meets the ISO 16128 criteria for a derived organic ingredient. Compared with propylene glycol, ZEMEA(R) propanediol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 86%, based on life cycle assessment. The agreement responds to a clear market signal: demand for bio-based, traceable, and lowercarbon ingredients is accelerating across European personal care, driven by clean-beauty positioning, brand owner sustainability commitments, and tightening expectations on ingredient transparency. Backed by full life-cycle data and microbiome-friendly certification, ZEMEA(R) propanediol gives formulators a documented route to replace petroleum-based glycols without compromising sensory performance. Extending its collaboration with Primient from Brazil into Central and Eastern Europe is a natural next step. Safic Alcan already know their bio-based platform and the depth of data behind it. Bringing ZEMEA(R) propanediol to formulators across the DACH region and CEE gives its customers a documented, high-performance alternative to petroleum glycols - backed by local technical support in their own markets. Philippe Villequey Business Unit Director Home & Personal Care Safic-Alcan ZEMEA(R) propanediol strengthens its regional portfolio precisely where the market is moving. Across Central and Eastern Europe, brand owners are reformulating toward biobased, traceable ingredients, and a 100% plant-derived, multifunctional glycol alternative answers that demand directly. With its laboratories and commercial teams close to the customer, Safic Alcan can turn this range into formulation wins across the region. Matthias Pfaffernoschke Managing Director, Central & Eastern Europe Safic-Alcan This expansion builds on a successful partnership and reflects its shared commitment to making bio-based innovation more accessible. With a broader distribution footprint, Safic Alcan can accelerate the adoption of ZEMEA(R) propanediol - an ingredient recognized for its renewable sourcing, excellent formulation performance, and strong sustainability profile - helping customers achieve both product performance and environmental objectives. Marjorie Morris ZEMEA(R) Global Marketing Director Primient About Safic-Alcan. Safic-Alcan is a leading specialty chemicals distributor, operating across more than 70 countries through 44 offices worldwide, with a turnover of €1,018 million in 2025 and more than 1,000 employees. The group distributes highly technical products used in specific applications across Rubber, Plastics, Coatings, Adhesives, Pharmaceuticals, Cosmetics, and Nutrition. Safic-Alcan is committed to providing expert technical support and sustainable specialty chemical solutions to its customers and supplier partners. About Primient. Primient is a bioeconomy leader dedicated to transforming corn into innovative, sustainable ingredients used in food and beverage, personal care, packaging, coatings, animal nutrition, and other products for many of the world's most recognized brands. With approximately 1,800 employees across facilities in the U.S., Poland, and Brazil. Primient is committed to safety, excellence, integrity, and growth to deliver solutions that enrich lives through plant-based solutions. Learn more. Let's build your next solution together. Guiding you through every stage of your innovation journey.