Posted on October 05, 2022 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton
As reported in our September 13, 2022, blog item, on September 12, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) creating a National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative “that will ensure we can make in the United States all that we invent in the United States.” The White House hosted a Summit on Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing on September 14, 2022. According to the White House fact sheet on the summit, federal departments and agencies, with funding of more than $2 billion, will take the following actions:
- Leverage biotechnology for strengthened supply chains: The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will invest $40 million to expand the role of biomanufacturing for active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), antibiotics, and the key starting materials needed to produce essential medications and respond to pandemics. The Department of Defense (DOD) is launching the Tri-Service Biotechnology for a Resilient Supply Chain program with a more than $270 million investment over five years to turn research into products more quickly and to support the advanced development of biobased materials for defense supply chains, such as fuels, fire-resistant composites, polymers and resins, and protective materials. Through the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Grand Challenge, the Department of Energy (DOE) will work with the Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to leverage the estimated one billion tons of sustainable biomass and waste resources in the United States to provide domestic supply chains for fuels, chemicals, and materials.
- Expand domestic biomanufacturing: DOD will invest $1 billion in bioindustrial domestic manufacturing infrastructure over five years to catalyze the establishment of the domestic bioindustrial manufacturing base that is accessible to U.S. innovators. According to the fact sheet, this support will provide incentives for private- and public-sector partners to expand manufacturing capacity for products important to both commercial and defense supply chains, such as critical chemicals.
- Foster innovation across the United States: The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently announced a competition to fund Regional Innovation Engines that will support key areas of national interest and economic promise, including biotechnology and biomanufacturing topics such as manufacturing life-saving medicines, reducing waste, and mitigating climate change. In May 2022, USDA announced $32 million for wood innovation and community wood grants, leveraging an additional $93 million in partner funds to develop new wood products and enable effective use of U.S. forest resources. DOE also plans to announce new awards of approximately $178 million to advance innovative research efforts in biotechnology, bioproducts, and biomaterials. In addition, the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge will invest more than $200 million to strengthen America’s bioeconomy by advancing regional biotechnology and biomanufacturing programs.
- Bring bioproducts to market: DOE will provide up to $100 million for research and development (R&D) for conversion of biomass to fuels and chemicals, including R&D for improved production and recycling of biobased plastics. DOE will also double efforts, adding an additional $60 million, to de-risk the scale-up of biotechnology and biomanufacturing that will lead to commercialization of biorefineries that produce renewable chemicals and fuels that significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, industry, and agriculture. The new $10 million Bioproduct Pilot Program will support scale-up activities and studies on the benefits of biobased products. Manufacturing USA institutes BioFabUSA and BioMADE (launched by DOD) and the National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) (launched by the Department of Commerce (DOC)) will expand their industry partnerships to enable commercialization across regenerative medicine, industrial biomanufacturing, and biopharmaceuticals.
- Train the next generation of biotechnologists: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is expanding the Innovation Corps (I-Corps™), a biotech entrepreneurship bootcamp. NIIMBL will continue to offer a summer immersion program, the NIIMBL eXperience, in partnership with the National Society for Black Engineers, which connects underrepresented students with biopharmaceutical companies, and support pathways to careers in biotechnology. In March 2022, USDA announced $68 million through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative to train the next generation of research and education professionals.
- Drive regulatory innovation to increase access to products of biotechnology: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is spearheading efforts to support advanced manufacturing through regulatory science, technical guidance, and increased engagement with industry seeking to leverage these emerging technologies. For agricultural biotechnologies, USDA is building new regulatory processes to promote safe innovation in agriculture and alternative foods, allowing USDA to review more diverse products.
- Advance measurements and standards for the bioeconomy: DOC plans to invest an additional $14 million next year at the National Institute of Standards and Technology for biotechnology research programs to develop measurement technologies, standards, and data for the U.S. bioeconomy.
- Reduce risk through investing in biosecurity innovations: DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration plans to initiate a new $20 million bioassurance program that will advance U.S. capabilities to anticipate, assess, detect, and mitigate biotechnology and biomanufacturing risks, and will integrate biosecurity into biotechnology development.
- Facilitate data sharing to advance the bioeconomy: Through the Cancer Moonshot, NIH is expanding the Cancer Research Data Ecosystem, a national data infrastructure that encourages data sharing to support cancer care for individual patients and enables discovery of new treatments. USDA is working with NIH to ensure that data on persistent poverty can be integrated with cancer surveillance. NSF recently announced a competition for a new $20 million biosciences data center to increase our understanding of living systems at small scales, which will produce new biotechnology designs to make products in agriculture, medicine and health, and materials.
A recording of the White House summit is available online.
Posted on July 14, 2021 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton
On June 24, 2021, a “unique and broad group” of chemical manufacturers, brand owners, environmental non-governmental organizations (NGO), states, and municipalities sent a letter to the leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies to express their “strong support” for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Safer Choice Program and to encourage that the program be funded fully. The letter asks that the following language be included in the report:
The Committee supports the Safer Choice program and directs that the program be funded and operated at least at levels consistent with Fiscal Year 2014, adjusted for inflation.
According to the letter, in the last quarter of 2020, EPA reorganized the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP), dissolving the Safer Choice branch and reassigning most staff to the areas of OCSPP. The letter states that “[a]s a result, the program is now severely under-resourced with approximately four full-time staff.” The Biden-Harris EPA has taken steps to restore the program, but EPA still faces resource constraints.
The letter describes how companies across the value chain use the Safer Choice brand to advance their individual safer chemical initiatives. Chemical manufacturers invested in developing safer chemicals now listed on the Safer Choice’s Safer Chemicals Ingredients List (SCIL). Brand owners and product manufacturers have reformulated products using the SCIL to obtain Safer Choice certification. Major retailers specify the Safer Choice label as a verifiable way to meet corporate goals laid out in public-facing chemicals policies.
According to the letter, the Safer Choice Program also provides value to entities outside of the supply chain. States and municipalities rely on the Safer Choice Program “because it is the only third-party program that requires all ingredients to be screened for hazards instead of simply using a restricted substances list.” NGOs and consumers “find significant value in an authoritative government program that can be trusted to vet safer chemicals and products.”
Posted on February 05, 2021 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On January 13, 2021, DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) announced the availability of $123.6 million in funding and $44.7 million of cost share available for 46 projects to stimulate technology innovation, improve energy productivity of American manufacturing, and enable the manufacturing of cutting-edge products in the United States. The 46 projects that will be selected under this funding opportunity announcement will focus in three areas to improve energy efficiency in energy-intensive processes:
- Efficiency improvements in advanced manufacturing processes;
- Efficiency improvements in chemical manufacturing; and
- Connected, flexible, and efficient manufacturing facilities, products, and energy systems.
Additional information is available here.
Posted on December 04, 2020 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On November 9, 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs office issued topics for its Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 SBIR/STTR Phase I Release 2 Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA). Participating in the FOA are the following program offices:
- Office of Cyber Security, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER);
- Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation (NNSA);
- Office of Electricity (OE);
- Office of Environmental Management (EM);
- Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE);
- Office of Fossil Energy (FE);
- Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (FES);
- Office of High Energy Physics (HEP); and
- Office of Nuclear Energy (NE).
DOE will host a webinar on December 18, 2020, to discuss the FOA and application process and changes to the DOE SBIR and STTR programs.
Additional important dates include:
- FOA Issued: December 14, 2020;
- Letter of Intent (LOI) Due Date: January 4 , 2021;
- Non-responsive LOI Feedback Provided: January 25, 2021;
- Application Due Date: February 22, 2021;
- Award Notification Date: May 17, 2021 (subject to change); and
- Start of Grant Budget Period: June 28, 2021 (subject to change).
Posted on November 06, 2020 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On October 15, 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the availability of over $27 million in funding for 12 projects supporting research and development (R&D) efforts toward advanced plastics recycling technologies and new recyclable plastics. These efforts are part of DOE’s Plastics Innovation Challenge, which aims to improve existing recycling processes that break plastics down into chemical building blocks that can be used to make new products. The 12 projects selected will address highly recyclable or biodegradable plastics, novel methods for deconstructing and upcycling existing plastics, and collaborations to tackle challenges in plastic waste.
Posted on May 29, 2020 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On May 21, 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) announced the availability of approximately $21.3 million in funding for 106 Phase I small business innovation projects. The funds, announced by U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette, are part of DOE’s $53 million available for Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) research and development projects. The selected small businesses represent 26 states. Most Phase I awards are $200,000 for a performance period of less than one year. Nine EERE technology offices will fund the awards under 12 topics.
Posted on March 13, 2020 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On March 6, 2020, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that up to $20 million in funding is available for workforce development at universities in emerging energy fields. Aiming to prepare the next generation of scientists and engineers, DOE’s investment will fund a land grant university to pursue interdisciplinary research through the support of expansions of existing joint graduate education programs with DOE National Laboratories. This effort will be led by DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) as part of the implementation of the “Charting a Course for Success: American’s Strategy for STEM Education” roadmap. The selected project will:
- Establish a five-year EERE Research, Training and Workforce Development Program that expands existing joint graduate programs, with associated investment in learning and research tools to promote research, entrepreneurship, and technology transfer;
- Use existing National Laboratory capabilities in key EERE-related areas for training and research that support EERE-funded projects; and
- Coordinate with other relevant programs, including regional and national fellowship and workforce development efforts, build sustainable alliances, and apply lessons learned and best practices.
Applications for this funding opportunities are due on or prior to April 13, 2020, at 5:00 p.m. (EDT).
Posted on November 15, 2019 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On November 12, 2019, DOE published a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for topics for its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)/Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I Release 2 funding. Participating in this FOA are the following DOE program offices:
- Office of Cyber Security, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER);
- Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation (NNSA);
- Office of Electricity (OE);
- EERE;
- Office of Environmental Management (EM);
- Office of Fossil Energy (FE);
- Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (FES);
- Office of High Energy Physics (HEP); and
- Office of Nuclear Energy (NE).
Interested applicants may register for one or more of DOE’s FY 2020 Phase I Release 2 SBIR/STTR Topics webinars. Presented by DOE Topic Managers, a series of three 90-minute webinars will be available:
For those unable to participate in the live webinars, they will be recorded and made available online.
In addition to the aforementioned webinars, a fourth one will be held to discuss the FOA and application process. This webinar will be held on December 19, 2019.
Posted on August 16, 2019 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On August 12, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced its Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Phase I Release 1 funding opportunity for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs. In its announcement, DOE encourages small businesses with strong research capabilities in science or engineering to apply. DOE’s Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) includes participation from its Advanced Scientific Computing Research, Basic Energy Sciences, Biological and Environmental Research, and Nuclear Physics program offices. On August 19, 2019, DOE will host a webinar to provide an overview of the SBIR/STTR technology areas, application process, and award process. Interested parties can register for the webinar here. Additional important dates are listed below.
- September 3, 2019 -- Letters of Intent (LOI) Due
- September 24, 2019 -- Non-responsive LOI Feedback Provided
- October 15, 2019 -- Full Applications Due
- January 6, 2020 -- Award Notification
- February 18, 2020 -- Project Grant Start Date
The full FOA and its topics can be accessed on DOE’s Office of Science webpage.
Posted on December 21, 2018 by Lynn L BergesonBy Lynn L. Bergeson
On December 17, 2018, DOE issued the Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 Phase I Release 2 Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs. Encouraging qualified small businesses with strong research capabilities in science or engineering, the following DOE program offices are offering funding opportunities:
- Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response;
- Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation;
- Office of Electricity;
- Office of Environmental Management;
- Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy;
- Office of Fossil Energy;
- Office of Fusion Energy Sciences;
- Office of High Energy Physics; and
- Office of Nuclear Energy.
Phase I Release 2 topics can be found here and the FOA, here. First-time applicants are required to complete a number of registrations prior to submitting an application. DOE recommends candidates start applying at least six weeks prior to application submission.
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