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Industrial & Green Biotech in Ghent | Avecom Microbial Innovations

Engineering Biology for a Circular Future: Avecom's Biotech Capabilities in Ghent

Engineering Biology for a Circular Future: Avecom’s Biotech Capabilities in Ghent

As a direct spin-off from Ghent University’s Center for Microbial Ecology and Technology (CMET), Avecom stands at the core of the Ghent biotech cluster. For over three decades, we have bridged the gap between fundamental microbial science and industrial-scale application. By mastering Microbial Resource Management (MRM), Avecom engineers mixed cultures and tailored micro-organisms to solve complex challenges across Green Biotech (environmental restoration and agricultural resilience) and White Biotech (industrial fermentation and side-stream valorization).

Located in Ghent — Europe’s premier bio-economy hub — we work alongside strategic partners like the Proteinn Club and  ILVO Food Pilot and spearhead clusters Catalisti, Flanders’Food and the Blue Cluster to take microbial processes from bench-scale feasibility to commercial deployment.

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Green Biotechnology: Biological Environmental Restoration & Ecosystem Support

Green biotechnology at Avecom replaces energy-intensive chemical treatments with targeted biological engines. We deploy specialized microbial consortia to restore degraded soil and water environments and optimize agricultural nutrient cycles.

Gloved hand holding a vial of brown sludge surrounded by petri dishes with colorful microbial colonies on a laboratory bench.

Core Competencies & Applications

  • In-Situ Bioremediation: Accelerating the natural biodegradation of toxic pollutants (CVOCs, BTEX, mineral oils, MTBE) in soil and groundwater using bioaugmentation and biostimulation.
  • Nutrient & Nitrogen Cycling: Leveraging specific nitrifying and denitrifying strains to optimize biological filters and municipal/industrial wastewater treatment plants.
  • Biological Corrosion & Ecology Monitoring: Utilizing high-throughput molecular tools (qPCR, Next-Generation Sequencing) to profile microbial communities and prevent Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion (MIC).

Soil core sample held at eye level showing layered strata from dark contaminated earth to clean amber tones, field remediation site in background.

Benchmark Projects & Proven Validation

  • Soil & Groundwater Bioremediations: Multidechlorobac: Bioaugmentation with anaerobic organohalide-respiring consortia to achieve complete dechlorination of chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons (CVOCs).
  • Bio-Electrochemical Remedation: EU ELECTRA Project: Integration of microbial electrochemistry with bioremediation to accelerate contaminant degradation under low groundwater flow conditions.
  • Aquaculture: ABIL: Deployment of hyper-concentrated nitrifying bacterial inocula for instant aquaculture biofilter startup.
  • Agriculture: MicroNOD: Converting industrial inorganic nitrogen into bio-fertilizers
  •  Bio-Self-Healng Infrastructure: EU SMARTINCS: Encapsulation of spore-forming alkali-resistant bacteria within cementitious systems to enable self-healing concrete via microbially induced calcite precipitation.

 

White & Industrial Biotechnology: Fermentation & Resource Recovery

Avecom transforms industrial side-streams, biogenic waste, and off-gases into high-value bioproducts. Our proprietary fermentation platforms enable industrial players to reduce raw material reliance and lower their carbon footprint.

Fermentation scientist in lab coat adjusting bioreactor valves, surrounded by glowing amber broth in glass flasks and tubing.

Core Competencies & Applications

  • Biomass & Precision Fermentation: Development, screening, and optimization of bacterial and fungal growth regimes on low-cost and second generation biogenic feedstocks.
  • Gaseous Carbon & Nitrogen Upscaling: Converting green hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and reactive nitrogen into high-grade single-cell protein (SCP) for human food and animal feed.
  • Bio-based Polymer Validation: Testing, synthesis, and biodegradation modeling of novel biopolymers and bio-monomers.

Stainless steel industrial fermenter beside a lab bioreactor, connected by tubing, with amber microbial broth visible through a porthole window.

Benchmark Projects & Proven Validation

  • Power-to-Protein & H2P (Hydrogen-to-Protein): Pioneer in closing the artificial nitrogen cycle. Avecom utilizes hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria (HOB) to synthesize single-cell protein directly from H2, CO2, and ammonium, generating a protein ingredient with an ultra-low land and water footprint.
  • EU AgriLoop & EU INGREEN: Converting agricultural side-streams (crop residues, food processing wastewater) and paper mill by-products into functional bio-based ingredients, bio-active packaging, and microbial feed proteins.
  • EU YPACK, EU EcoPlastiC & B4Plastics Collaboration: Validating novel polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) backbones and bio-based plastics for industrial packaging, assessing both pilot-scale microbial biosynthesis and environmental end-of-life biodegradability.
  • EU FUEL-UP & PROMIC: Developing bio-catalytic pathways to upgrade biogenic residues into advanced bio-aviation fuels and valorizing COD-rich industrial wastewater into feed-grade microbial biomass.

The Ghent Advantage: Scale-Up Infrastructure from Bench to Market

The biggest bottleneck in industrial biotechnology is scaling up from lab flasks to industrial reactors. Avecom eliminates this barrier within the Ghent ecosystem.

  • Lab Feasibility & Microcosm Testing: Screening micro-organisms, optimizing media, and evaluating degradation/synthesis kinetics under controlled conditions.
  • Pilot-Scale Process Engineering: Multi-liter to 2 m³ bioreactor scale-up, refining yield metrics, gas-transfer rates, and downstream processing (DSP).
  • Ecosystem Integration: Seamless handover of validated protocols to scale-up partners like the Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant (BBEPP) for multi-ton demonstration batches.

Accelerate Your Bio-Based Innovation

Partner with Ghent’s leading applied microbial experts to validate, optimize, and scale your biotechnology processes.

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Scientific Publications/Brochures

Customer testimonial Lanxess

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Partnership Testimonial – Microbial Insights

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E-book | Microbial ecology as a pathway to sustainable industrial practices

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