3-day scale up workshop at BEACON pilot-scale biorefining centre

10 June 2026

The Biomass Conversion and Biorefining team at IBERS recently hosted 8 early-career researchers associated with the Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein and the UKRI Microbial Foods Hub for an intensive 3-day scale-up workshop at the BEACON Pilot-Scale Biorefining Centre at AberInnovation and Aberystwyth University.

This unique UK facility brings together decades of crop breeding and biorefining expertise with advanced pilot-scale capabilities in biomass pretreatment, fractionation, fermentation and downstream processing.

During the workshop, participants:

  • Observed pilot-scale biorefining of perennial ryegrass – a rare, first-of-its-kind UK experience
  • Followed the full process from biomass to product, including screw pressing, hydrolysis, membrane filtration and fermentation of grass juice to single-cell protein
  • Gained valuable insights into the realities of scale-up, including process trade-offs and operational challenges

Designed to go beyond a standard tour, the programme immersed researchers in real-world bioprocessing, encouraging a “design with the end in mind” approach to ensure lab research translates to industrial impact.

The workshop combined expert talks, live demos, start-up insights and networking, bringing together researchers from across institutions to spark collaboration in sustainable biotech and alternative proteins.

Next steps: exploring focused training on downstream processing to take fermentation products through to stable end-products.

Supported by Research Wales Innovation Fund through AberCollab at Aberystwyth University, the Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein, and AberInnovation.