Disappeared News: Genetically Engineering Microbes Are Back

Saturday, April 06, 2013

Genetically Engineering Microbes Are Back

By Henry Curtis

Governor of the State of Hawai`i NEWS RELEASE (April 6, 2013)

“At a special open house event at the USDA Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center (PBARC), Gov. Neil Abercrombie today presented a $200,000 check from the state Department of Agriculture that will go toward the Hilo center’s zero waste biofuel and high protein feed program.

PBARC along with Florida-based BioTork Hawaii LLC have invested more than $1 million to successfully develop an economically sustainable zero waste conversion project producing biofuel and high protein animal feed from unmarketable papaya. The conversion process takes 14 days to cycle in a heterotrophic environment, meaning no sunlight is needed using organically optimized algae/fungi developed and patented by BioTork.

The state’s $200,000 investment will assist PBARC in moving the project to pilot scale as a prelude to commercial production. The State of Hawaii’s Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) will become a venture partner to globally export the rapid conversion technology in association with PBARC and BioTork Hawaii LLC.”

EVOLUGATE “PRESS KIT” (2010): Several genetically modified micro-organisms have been developed to produce biofuel such as ethanol, butanol, methanol and other chemicals from biomass. Properties of those biofuel producing micro-organisms such as yield, temperature resistance, pH sensitivity, ethanol, butanol, methanol or other chemicals tolerance could be improved by selection in the Evolugator TM to reduce the final product cost. EVOLUGATE contracted with BioTork LLC the exclusive license of its proprietary continuous culture technology for every biofuel application."

BioTork, the spin-off company recently created from Evolugate to capitalize on the Biofuels opportunity.

In 2005 the Board of Agriculture approved a proposal by Mera Pharmaceuticals to import genetically engineered microalgae to make pharmaceuticals. Many groups including Life of the Land testified in opposition. Worried about escaping GE microorganisms. a group of community and environmental groups successfully fought to block the importation.

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