IBISBA-IE sets out strategic direction for Ireland’s biotechnology and biomanufacturing infrastructure

27 Oct 2026

Researchers from University College Cork (UCC) played a leading role at the IBISBA-IE Symposium during the Global Bioeconomy Summit 2026 in Dublin, which explored how Ireland can strengthen and coordinate its biotechnology and biomanufacturing infrastructure in Europe. 

Held as part of Ireland's hosting of the European Union Presidency, the Global Bioeconomy Summit brought together policymakers, researchers, industry leaders and international stakeholders to discuss the future of the bioeconomy. 

As Ireland's national node of the European Research Infrastructure for Industrial Biotechnology, IBISBA-IE aims to support the coordinated development of a national biotechnology infrastructure network, helping connect Irish expertise with research and innovation capabilities across Europe.  

The Centre for Sustainable Fermentation and Bioprocessing Systems for Food and the Bioeconomy (SUSFERM), a UCC Futures Strategic Research Centre at UCC, delivers a powerful interdisciplinary focus to address major challenges and opportunities in the allied areas of sustainable food production and the circular bioeconomy. 

SUSFERM provides the integrated research framework, from microbial strain selection and engineering, through upstream and downstream bioprocess development, and on to scale-up that is required for modern biotechnology and biomanufacturing. As well as hosting Principal Investigators from all these areas, SUSFERM operates an accessible, supported Microbial Fermentation Research Infrastructure that enables rapid parallel development of strains and processes. Through initiatives such as SUSFERM, UCC's expertise aligns with IBISBA's ambition to advance biotechnology from discovery to commercial application. 

The symposium highlighted Ireland's biotechnology capabilities and launched a new capacity audit of Irish biotechnology infrastructure, carried out through the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM)-funded FEDERI project. The findings will inform the development of a national service catalogue aimed at improving access to facilities and fostering collaboration across the sector. These in turn will help achieve the strategic targets and actions identified in the National Bioeconomy Strategy 2026 – 2030, which also launched at the summit by the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin TD. 

Reflecting on the role of IBISBA-IE in the context of Ireland’s EU Council Presidency, Professor John Morrissey, School of Microbiology/SUSFERM, UCC and IBISBA-IE Coordinator, said:  

“IBIBSA-IE epitomises the slogan of the Irish EU Presidency “Ní neart go cur le chéile”. By working strategically and collectively in a co-ordinated way, we demonstrate how “strength though unity” accelerates innovation in biotechnology sectors.” 

The UCC research community was strongly represented throughout the Global Bioeconomy Summit by Professor John Morrissey, Professor Maria de Sousa Gallagher, Dr Archishman Bose, Dr David Wall, Dr Francisco DaSilva, Dr Kanishka Mendhekar, Dr Gaurav Rajauria, and Dr Sarah O'Connell.