BASF partners with Acies Bio to drive sustainable production of Personal and Home Care ingredients

• Partnership on biotechnology supports the further development of fermentation technology 
• BASF to benefit from Acies Bio’s OneCarbonBio platform, the first fully flexible synthetic biology platform for efficient conversion of renewable methanol 
• Collaboration aims to develop a commercially viable technology to diversify raw materials for home and personal care products

BASF and Acies Bio, one of Europe’s leading biotechnology companies, have entered into a transformative partnership to further develop a platform for fermentation technology from methanol for the production of fatty alcohols. Fatty alcohols are essential building blocks for several ingredients in the home and personal care markets, in particular surfactants. Acies Bio’s biotechnological expertise complements BASF’s drive for innovative solutions and contributes to shaping a more sustainable future.

Acies Bio has developed the “OneCarbonBio”, a fully flexible synthetic biology platform designed to efficiently convert renewable methanol, derived from captured CO₂ emissions, into a variety of chemical raw materials. Under the terms of the partnership, BASF’s Care Chemicals division and Acies Bio will use the specialized microbes and scale up the fermentation process to produce fatty acids and derivatives serving to manufacture various chemical compounds. BASF will contribute its expertise in developing processes, providing integrated value chain solutions and accessing global markets.

Acies Bio and BASF aim to combine their strengths in a co-development effort and to build on their combined research and development expertise. For BASF, the expected benefits of the project include increased scale and flexibility, leading to a diversification of the renewable feedstock portfolio and contributing to the resilience of Care Chemicals’ global supply chain.

“Biotechnology complements our chemistry to create a more sustainable future,” said Dr. Matthias Maase, Global Director Sustainability, Care Chemicals BASF. “We are very pleased to have found the right partner in Acies Bio to further develop this innovation at an early stage. With a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach, our research scope of the partnership covers the entire chain from production strain development to large scale manufacturing. This will be of benefit to our customers in Personal Care, Home Care and I&I and Industrial Formulators worldwide.”

Dr. Gregor Kosec, Director of R&D at Acies Bio, said, “Partnering with BASF marks an important milestone, reflecting a significant recognition of Acies Bio’s R&D efforts. By combining our advanced microbial production strains and the OneCarbonBio platform with BASF’s proven process development and supply chain expertise, we are poised to bring our technologies to a global scale. This collaboration demonstrates the transformative potential of Acies Bio’s microbial innovations to drive net-zero production of specialty and industrial chemicals.”
 

About the Care Chemicals division at BASF 

BASF’s Care Chemicals division offers a broad range of ingredients for personal care, home care, industrial & institutional cleaning, and technical applications. We are a leading global supplier for the cosmetics industry as well as the detergents and cleaners industry, and support our customers with innovative and sustainable products, solutions and concepts. The division’s high-performance product portfolio includes surfactants, emulsifiers, polymers, emollients, chelating agents, cosmetic active ingredients and UV filters. We have production and development sites in all regions and are expanding our presence in emerging markets.

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Around 112,000 employees in the BASF Group contribute to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio comprises six segments: Chemicals, Materials, Industrial Solutions, Surface Technologies, Nutrition & Care and Agricultural Solutions. BASF generated sales of €68.9 billion in 2023. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchange in Frankfurt (BAS) and as American Depositary Receipts (BASFY) in the United States.

About  Acies Bio 

 Acies Bio is a leading European microbial biotechnology company that develops new bioproducts and sustainable production processes for diverse industrial sectors, including food/feed, agricultural, and industrial biotechnology. With a focus on key sustainability related challenges Acies Bio  uses its unique SmartRoute platform for rapid microbial technology development, including synthetic biology, strain engineering, directed evolution, and precision bioprocess and downstream development. Acies Bio is working with industrial partners to develop, scale and commercialize innovative bioproducts and precision fermentation technologies for global markets. 

Source: BASF, press release, 2024-11-05.