Bioconnect sets out its vision

THE €7M BioConnect Innovation Centre, Monaghan’s new research and development hub for the agri-food and bioeconomy sectors, opened its Knockaconny doors to visitors for the first time last Thursday, October 22, and people from all over the world came to see.

An international party of delegates from the Global Bioeconomy Summit, taking place at the Dublin Convention Centre under Ireland’s EU Presidency, were briefed on the role BioConnect plans to play as a driver of innovation in bio economics.

The party of around 50 delegates, including representatives of several EU States, East Africa, the USA and Japan, also gained an insight into the nature of economic activity in Monaghan and the wider border region through engagement with a range of the new hub’s partners and collaborators. The delegates were greeted by Monaghan Mushrooms founder Ronnie Wilson who conceived the BioConnect concept and whose company is one of the key stakeholders.

Other local companies presenting on the morning included Connolly’s Eggs of Derryhellan, Carrickroe; SomaTech Ltd of Ballybay and the Rockstone Engineering automation innovator, which has nearby offices at Knockaconny.

Education partners participating included the Co-Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, a research collaboration involving UCD, Queen’s University Belfast and the University of Sheffield; Monaghan Institute, DkIT and the Southern Region College. Enterprise Ireland, Dublin-based Promecens Entosystems, currently collaborating with BioConnect, Armagh’s Linwood Health Food Systems, Meat Technology Ireland and Northern Ireland Food and Drink also took part.

“Speeding the journey from idea to market,” was how Chief Executive Jennifer Savage synthesised for the delegates how BioConnect hopes to operate. She said the core team of Bioprocess Manager David Lipscomb, Industry Innovation Manager Charlene Connolly and herself are academics who have worked in the bioeconomy sector and their goal is to speed the flow of knowledge from academia to industry and translate ideas into real commercial outcomes.

Dr Savage said BioConnect was initiated in 2019 and is an Enterprise Ireland project hugely supported by Monaghan County Council, Enterprising Monaghan and also LEADER funding.

The team will now proceed to furnish and equip their office and laboratory spaces ahead of a planned official opening in January, 2027. Their research and development services are already working at laboratory facilities at Monaghan Mushrooms donated by Ronnie Wilson.

The Chief Executive said the building will offer opportunities for laboratory and office space to be leased. “We will offer industry-focused training supports and skills to companies that need on-site training and technical support,” she said.

“I am a Monaghan person and I have deep faith in what BioConnect will deliver,” stated Industry Innovation Manager Dr Connolly.

Dr Connolly said that, while BioConnect will work with large companies like Monaghan Mushrooms, it will also engage with SMEs who might have fantastic ideas but lack the resources to develop them.

"I want to work with our partners to deliver new products and innovation that are commercially sustainable,” she said.

Tony Callaghan, CEO of SomaTech Ltd, based at the Ballybay Enterprise Centre, described his company’s work with solid-state fermentation to generate high-value nutrients from the byproducts of food and brewing production with a view to “improving feed conversion, animal health and profitability for the farmer”.

There are big “gut health” opportunities for the process in the human market too, he believes.

“A big part of our business is developing technology to lease out to byproduct producers, and producing commercially relevant volumes of these ingredients,” Mr Callaghan stated.

“We see great synergies with BioConnect – we can make the ingredients and do the analytical side, but working with BioConnect can take pressure off our shoulders.

“We have a global vision for this technology, but we have to prove it out locally first.”

John Colreavy of the New Technology Ireland research platform predicted that BioConnect will “fill a key gap”.

Karl Walsh, Head of Research and Bioeconomy with the Department of Agriculture, oriented the international guests by explaining that they were visiting a very strong agricultural region, close to the border with Northern Ireland, particularly well known for pig, poultry and mushroom production.

He acknowledged that the Government’s Shared Island Fund is “backing concrete, real-world projects that bring communities north and south together”.

Mr Walsh said BioConnect is a key component in a network of bio-refinery facilities that will contribute to a Government initiative to “bring the bioeconomy to life” and take it beyond the research laboratories. “Many SMEs are involved in this sector and facilities like BioConnect will derisk the process of product development,” he remarked.

“The real focus now must be to scale up the bioeconomy to create opportunities for the development of businesses. There will be financial and regulatory challenges, and a market demand to create, but there are major opportunities for collaboration and I foresee BioConnect playing a key role in this. It will be a fantastic facility when it opens next year.”