IBD UTM AND SBG AGRIFEED TO EMBARK ON SMART FEED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
20th December 2017 – A new Research Agreement was signed today between the Institute of Bioproduct Development (IBD) Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and SBG Agrifeed (M) Sdn Bhd on a Contract Research project entitled “High Cell Mass Cultivation for Production of Functional Probiotic Powder”. The project is carried out by IBD’s Bioprocessing Technology Platform (A BioNexus Partner Laboratory) and lead by our Industrial Biotechnology expert, Prof Dr Hesham Enshasy. Prof Dr Mohamad Roji Sarmidi, IBD’s Acting Director was present to represent UTM welcomes the collaboration and and remarked how it fits into IBD’s research theme specifically on the development of microbial based product for the wellness industry.
Prof Dr Mohamad Roji and Mr Vick, together with Project Lead (Prof Hesham) and Ms Jennifer Edwina
SBG Agrifeed Sdn Bhd (A BioNexus Status Company) is a business that deals with the production and trading of microbial based animal feeds in Malaysia. According to Mr Vickpasubathysiwa the Director of SBG Agrifeed, the demand for quality meats have steadily grown in Malaysia despite the conditions of the economy. For the company to stay competitive and sustainable, it was important for them to invest in adopting innovative proprietary technology developed by IBD. Additionally, the project involves investing on human capital development in the form of awarding a Master scholarship to Miss Jennifer Edwina. Miss Jennifer Edwina will carry out in depth studies and closely work with the IBD team and eventually be employed by the company to ease the process of technology transfer.
Ms Jennifer Edwina, SBG Agrifeed Master Scholarship Recipient
IBD’s Bioprocessing Technology Platform is equipped with the capacity to carry out primary bioprocess optimization in small scale bioreactors (16-L up to large scale manufacturing 1500L bioreactor). Hence, it has become a unique integrated facility in line with industrial needs. Prof Hesham Enshasy added that, the collaboration will strengthen the current technology platform as the project adds value to the current facility especially in the instalment of related equipment and positions IBD and UTM as the service of choice for the biotechnology industry.
