NRC — Microbial Fermentation Pilot Plant Facility ### 📋 Eligible Entities - Private companies engaged in biotechnology, pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, or related life sciences sectors - Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) developing fermentation-based products - Research organizations and academic institutions partnering with industry - Startups and scale-up companies in microbial biotech fields - Entities with viable laboratory-stage fermentation processes ready for scale-up - Requirement: Must have demonstrated proof-of-concept at bench scale before facility access ### 💰 Funding Details - Structure: Fee-for-service model (NOT a traditional grant) - Funding mechanism: Access to NRC equipment and facilities; costs charged based on facility usage, equipment time, and technical support - Scale: Equipment supports fermentation batches up to 1,500-litre capacity - No repayment obligation: Participants pay operational/access fees rather than repaying a loan - Flexible engagement: Pricing typically based on hourly equipment use, staff consultation, and materials consumed - Cost-sharing: Participants bear facility access fees; no matching funds typically required from NRC ### 🛠️ Approved Expenses - Fermentation scale-up and process optimization (lab to pilot scale) - cGMP compliance implementation and validation - Equipment access and usage time (bioreactors, monitoring systems, downstream processing equipment) - Technical expertise and consulting from NRC staff - Process development and troubleshooting - Production of pilot batches for regulatory submissions or market testing - Quality control and analytical testing during fermentation runs - Documentation and regulatory support to meet pharmaceutical/nutraceutical standards ### ⚠️ Conditions & Milestones - Pre-qualification: Applicants must submit detailed project proposal demonstrating feasibility and current development stage - Process readiness: Laboratory-scale fermentation protocols must be established and transferable - cGMP alignment: Project objectives must support transition to Good Manufacturing Practice standards - Facility scheduling: Access subject to NRC facility