Thanks to this new chair, approved by the Governing Council of the UAL, the agreement, signed last 19th December, will promote the development of joint research between Biorizon Biotech and the University of Almeria, in the field of biotechnology in the biotech industry. microalgae and the automation and digitisation of their production processes, thus favouring the transfer of knowledge and social culture towards the development of sustainable agricultural practices.

To achieve this, promotion, research and dissemination activities will be set in motion aimed at meeting sustainable development objectives by encouraging collaboration between the University of Almeria and the business world, as well as increasing the employability of students and fostering their professional development through continuous training.

The Biorizon Biotech Chair Regenerative Agriculture in 4.0 seeks to deepen knowledge and promote both the transfer and generation of new knowledge in the field of microalgae, other microorganisms and natural solutions, supported at all points by the technification, digitalisation and automation of processes, aiming to contribute to the development of the concept of Regenerative Agriculture in a connected environment, as a solution for sustainable environmental, social and economic development.

Biorizon Biotech and the University of Almeria, a very close relationship

Biorizon Biotech is a multinational biotechnology company based in Almeria, a world pioneer in the development and commercialisation of biostimulant and biopesticide products for agriculture based on microalgae.

The cooperative trajectory between Biorizon Biotech and the University of Almeria, initially through the Chemical Engineering team led by the Professorand, currently, also with the Automation, Robotics and Mechatronics team  through Professor José Luis Guzmán, is long and fruitful.

Biorizon Biotech and the University of Almeria have made important developments to date in the field of biotechnology for microalgae production, as well as in the development of automation and control systems for the production of microalgal biomass, in addition to the development of microbial solutions based on the use of bacteria in agriculture as biostimulants and natural biopesticides.

The work and results obtained through the numerous research projects carried out jointly have contributed to obtaining biological products that, when used in agriculture, allow the reduction of mineral fertilisers and other synthetic chemicals.

In addition, both entities have carried out important joint work in the development of circular economy processes through the use of microalgae for the recovery of nutrients, while capturing up to 2 kg of CO2 per kg of microalgae biomass produced, transforming this microalgal biomass into value-added products for a new modern and sustainable agriculture, such as biostimulants and biopesticides.

The Biorizon Biotech Chair -UAL

The chair will be coordinated from both a scientific and business point of view, as both companies and universities seek to develop projects and knowledge in line with the needs of the reality of agricultural production and the needs of the market.

The Chair will be co-directed by Professor José Luis Guzmán Sánchez on behalf of the University of Almería, and co-directed by Biorizon Biotech’s R&D Director, Dr. Joaquín Pozo Dengra, with ProfessorFrancisco Rodríguez Díazacting as secretary.

Both Biorizon Biotech and the University of Almeria have conveyed the need to make further progress in the work carried out so far to achieve the development of a more natural, sustainable and productive agricultural model.