Our spin-offs
We have built a solid reputation in applied microbiological research.
Our expertise has contributed to the creation of four start-up companies: MRM Health, Aphea.Bio, Protealis and Bar.On.
Any beer in a matter of seconds
What could be better than beer 1.0? Beer 2.0!
Bar.On is bringing molecular beer mixing to the market. Thanks to its highly-innovative beer machines, cartridges filled with natural flavours and fool-proof recipes, you mix any beer you like by simply pushing a few buttons.
Sustainable plant proteins for Europe
Protealis develops superior seeds and seed technologies for legume crops to be better adapted to the European environment. By combining innovation in breeding and nitrogen fixation Protealis creates new opportunities for European farmers to help overcome Europe’s protein deficit and provide local and sustainable sourcing options for the growing number of producers of meat and dairy alternatives.
Unlocking the full potential of the gut microbiome
Research suggests that our gut flora can affect various aspects of our health. MRM Health, incorporated in 2020, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing innovative therapeutics based on the human microbiome.
Backed by the expertise of Jeroen Raes (VIB–KU Leuven Center for Microbiology) and Dirk Elewaut (VIB–UGent Center for Inflammation Research), MRM Health will use its proprietary technology platform to develop Live Biotherapeutic Products (LBPs), a novel class of disease-mitigating therapeutics.
Driving the revolution in biologicals
Soils contain a diverse suite of micro-organisms which perform myriad important functions. Some of these micro-organisms can influence crop growth and yield. This formed the basis of the VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology and the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology spin-off company Aphea.Bio.
Founded in 2017, this company exploits natural micro-organisms to increase crop yields and to protect them against specific fungal diseases in a sustainable way. Researchers at the VIB-KU Leuven Center for Microbiology have implemented iChip technology to isolate non-culturable soil micro-organisms and are currently identifying novel antifungal molecules produced by these bacteria.