As just 1 of 5 programs nationwide to be selected, ZymoChem will advance bioprocessing research and scale-up.

SAN LEANDRO, Calif., Nov. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- ZymoChem, creators of Carbon Conserving (C²) technology that converts renewable feedstocks into high-value materials in an environmentally sustainable fashion to replace petroleum-based ingredients in everyday consumer goods, announces that it is the recipient of a $4.0 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO).

This funding is in support of the DOE's Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap, which seeks to decarbonize the nation's industrial sector via emission reductions and by positioning the U.S. industrial sector as an innovation leader globally. Since its founding in 2015, ZymoChem has used their patented technologies to replace petroleum-based ingredients in items we use every day – from personal hygiene items to textiles – without compromising cost, performance, scale, or sustainability. 

"ZymoChem is grateful to be a part of the Department of Energy's innovative investment portfolio," said Jon Kuchenreuther, ZymoChem's Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer. "This collaboration showcases how ZymoChem's technology can reimagine chemical manufacturing for the 21st century in a more efficient and environmentally sustainable manner."

ZymoChem was selected to a cohort of just four other organizations nationwide based on its progress in scaling vital materials via fermentation and downstream purification operations. The results are high value materials derived from sugars that are low-cost, environmentally safe, high-performing, and biodegradable. The technology unlocks near term chemical commercialization with the potential for significant greenhouse gas reduction potential.

"Decarbonizing the industrial sector is also crucial to equity goals," the DOE noted in its press release of the grant funding. The DOE went on to share that supporting companies like ZymoChem is in line with the "DOE's long-term objectives of advancing high-impact technologies that will create well-paying jobs, support underserved economies, and accelerate the growth of the U.S. bioeconomy."

This support is another example of how ZymoChem is contributing to the President's 2022 Executive Order on Advancing BioTechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure Bioeconomy, to address the climate crisis via innovation in renewable energy and chemicals manufacturing in America. Earlier in 2023, ZymoChem was selected as a member of the Department of Defense's BioMADE program.

About ZymoChem

Founded in 2015 by Harshal Chokhawala and Jon Kuchenreuther following their post-doctoral research together at University of California Berkeley, ZymoChem is breakthrough science for a fossil-free future. With headquarters in San Leandro, CA and a satellite division in Burlington, VT, ZymoChem envisions a world in which the goods we depend on everyday are bio-manufactured from 100% renewable materials and designed for a sustainable economy. Through their multi-generational and multi-product patents, ZymoChem's proprietary Carbon Conserving (C²) microbes convert renewable feedstocks into bio-based materials without compromising price, performance, scale, or sustainability, while radically minimizing CO₂ loss during the production phase. 

SOURCE ZymoChem