Bioval holds session on bioeconomy and blue biotechnology and its General Assembly

On July 3rd we held the second General Assembly of the year and a bionetworking in the Veles e Vents building in Valencia together with all the associates.

At the event, Angela Perez, president of Bioval, took the opportunity to thank those attending for her renewal as president of the cluster, which took place just a few months ago, as well as to introduce the positions of the new board of directors, formed by Andres Anton, president of the Business Association of Biotechnology of the Province of Alicante (AEBA), as vice president for Alicante; Jose Maria Lagaron, founder of Bioinicia, who will be the vice president for Valencia; Loreto Crespo, CEO and co-founder of Genotipia, as secretary, and Juan Pablo Torregrosa, from the European Center for Business and Innovation of Valencia (CEEI), the treasurer.

In addition, Jesús Agüero, director of Bioval, reviewed all the successes and progress achieved in recent months by the bio cluster, accompanied by María Herrero, from the communications department, who explained the communication milestones in detail, and Maridés Perpiñá, technical secretary, who reviewed them at an economic level.

Five new additions to Bioval

The new partners that have joined the Valencian Community's bio cluster in recent months and that have been ratified at the Assembly are the CRO Advanced Medical Services as a collaborating partner, the companies Curapath, which works with drug delivery systems based on polymers and lipids for cell therapy, genetics and vaccine administration, Sistemas Genómicos, specialists in genomic analysis and genetic diagnosis, Episteme by Diario de una Científica, founded by the biotechnologist and scientific communicator Lucía Almagro dedicated to content creation and Veganic Nature, the latest project by Carlos Ledó, founder of Idai Nature and former president of Bioval between 2018 and 2021. This meeting was the perfect setting to welcome them and make known their work and the challenges and opportunities they face.

Bionetworking: blue biotechnology

Following the Assembly, a session on blue biotechnology was held, where we heard about the work carried out at the Torre la Sal Aquaculture Institute, led by its director Ariadna Sitja. The CSIC institute, located in the province of Castellón, plans to join Bioval in the coming months.

In addition, other partners were able to comment on the work they do in this area. Jerónimo Chirivella, from the Catholic University of Valencia, presented the international master's degree in Marine Biotechnology, while Guillermo del Barco Aldaz from Mediterranean Algae, his work with macroalgae for bioremediation and obtaining bioactive compounds for food, nutraceuticals and cosmetics. In addition, Begoña Ruiz from AINIA, talked about the benefits of the aquatic plant Lemna as a new food and Gabriel Estañ from IDiBE – UMH, presented the institute's activities with applications in this area, such as the group that investigates antiviral strategies and vaccines for aquaculture.

The speakers shared projects based on marine biotechnology, aquaculture and its contribution to the Spanish economy. “Aquaculture, which already generates around 500 million euros a year, is going to increase its production by 20%, which will impact the local economy, especially in rural and coastal areas,” explained Ariadna Sitja.

Blue or marine biotechnology is understood as the application of science and technology to aquatic organisms for the production of knowledge, goods and services. Applications of blue biotechnology include the development of new therapies, nutraceuticals and functional foods, cosmetics, bioprospecting, biodiversity conservation, bioenergy and bioremediation.

It is estimated that more than 90% of the organisms that live in the oceans are unknown, and every year new marine compounds are discovered with promising functions for health and the planet. The sector has an innovative character that investigates new technologies to improve the quality and reliability of these compounds.

We also had the company of guests from Startup Valencia and FEDACOVA, as well as the general director of fisheries, Francisco Espinós, who was in charge of closing the session in which aquaculture played a leading role.

The day ended with a catamaran ride through the waters of the Valencian sea, an ideal opportunity to discuss, debate, share opinions and create synergies between partners in an incomparable setting.