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Making Illinois the epicenter for biomanufacturing and precision fermentation

With its world-class facilities, partners, and aligned consortium, iFAB is driving economic growth and precision fermentation into the future.

Why Biomanufacturing

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IFAB Awarded $51M in Implementation Funding

iFAB was one of 12 Implementation Funding Awardees granted by the U.S. EDA.

Primed to increase capacity and drive new market growth

Biomanufacturing converts crops like corn and soybeans into a range of high-value chemicals ad ingredients. This will provide an enormous opportunity for bio-based businesses in Illinois. While the U.S. demand and potential are great, the infrastructure is lacking.

iFAB is responding by growing Illinois bioprocessing into a best-in-the-world hub for fermentation manufacturing.

Learn more about opportunities for growth 

Fermentation in facility
Image of fermentation tanks in facility

A scalable, best-in-class facility

One of the most comprehensive bioprocessing scale-up facilities in the nation is located in the heart of the Midwest at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The Integrated Bioprocessing Research Lab (IBRL) has the capacity to work with food ingredients, high-value industrial molecules, cosmetics, and more, providing access to infrastructure and equipment that otherwise wouldn't be available.

Learn more about the Illinois advantage

Harvesting crops

Sustainable domestic manufacturing through biology

Precision fermentation does more than make corn into ethanol for fuel. Specialized processing can create more advanced types of food protein, new types of textiles and fibers, more modern polymers, and commercial grades of oils/lipids, pigments, and even cosmetics.

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Current List of Partners

Higher Education

  • Parkland College
  • Richland Community College
  • University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (LEAD)

Economic Development Organizations

  • Champaign County Economic Development Corporation
  • Economic Development Corporation of Decatur-Macon County
  • Intersect Illinois

Industry Firms

  • ADM
  • Boston Bioprocess
  • Clarkson Grain Company
  • gener8tor
  • Primient
  • Serra Ventures

Industry Groups

  • Corn Refiners Association
  • Illinois Agri-Food Alliance
  • Illinois Manufacturers’ Association
  • Illinois Soybean Association

Labor Organizations

  • Decatur Building & Construction Trades, AFL-CIO
  • East Central Illinois Building & Construction Trades Council
  • UA Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 149
  • United Steel Workers

Manufacturing Extension Centers

  • Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center

Units of Government

  • Champaign County
  • City of Champaign
  • City of Decatur
  • Macon County
  • Piatt County
  • State of Illinois

Venture Development Organizations

  • University of Illinois Research Park, LLC

Workforce Training Organizations

  • Champaign County Regional Planning Commission (Champaign WIOA)
  • Workforce Investment Solutions (Decatur WIOA)
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