News
DSM on the hunt for innovators, entrepreneurs
1 May 2017DSM has invited entrepreneurs and innovators looking for financing and partnership to apply to attend an engaging event with top DSM executives to explore business collaborations and investment opportunities.
DSM has invited entrepreneurs and innovators looking for financing and partnership to apply to attend an engaging event with top DSM executives to explore business collaborations and investment opportunities.
The Innovation Partnering Conference ‘Connecting Bright Innovations 2017’ will focus on new and innovative products and (bio)technologies that enable better food for everyone - food which is healthier, more affordable, better tasting, with less waste, without compromising safety and quality. The conference will be held on 19-20 September 2017 at DSM's new Biotechnology Center in Delft, the Netherlands.Innovation, says the company, is what turns DSM's Bright Science into Brighter Living; it is about discovering and integrating the best, most sustainable and commercially viable solutions to meet market needs, drive profitable growth and help towards feeding more than 9 billion people by 2050 in a healthy, tasty and sustainable way. DSM is looking to both finance and partner with innovative entities in this space that want to take their products and solutions to the next level. ‘Connecting Bright Innovations 2017’ represents an opportunity for entrepreneurs and start-up companies to present their product or technology to an organization uniquely positioned to help realize its full commercial potential.This is the fifth such conference hosted by DSM. Previous editions have led to successful financing and partnership deals between DSM and attendees.DSM is seeking entries for innovative technologies and products with both near-term (<3 years to commercialization) and longer-term (>3 years to commercialization) applications in the following areas of interest:+ Sugar reduction and natural alternative sweeteners+ Bio-preservation solutions for food and beverages+ Salt reduction and other natural taste modulation solutions+ Solutions to improve digestive health and bio-availability+ Food chain efficiency and food waste reduction solutions+ Fermentation and enzymatic technologies for new ingredients+ The role of new proteins in healthier, better tasting, more sustainable food products and production systemsThe Innovation Partnering Conference ‘Connecting Bright Innovations 2017’ will be held at the Rosalind Franklin Biotechnology Center on the DSM site in Delft. The center’s location at the heart of the Biotech Campus Delft allows DSM to rapidly develop and scale up biotechnology solutions for promising new ingredients for customer validation and commercial roll-out. The Biotech Campus Delft, an initiative of DSM Delft, Delft University of Technology, the City of Delft and the Province of South Holland, builds on the location’s existing competences and internationally recognized position as a world leader in biotechnology development. It brings together fundamental science and R&D, applications expertise, piloting and scale-up facilities as well commercial and market insights and relationships on one location.A selection committee of DSM and Nutrition Capital Network (NCN) executives will evaluate and interact with applicants to select the invited companies. Presenting companies will be assigned mentors from NCN and DSM to help develop their presentation prior to the event. Post-conference mentoring from a DSM executive will be available on a case-by-case basis and all selected candidates will be considered for an investment by DSM Venturing or for another type of collaboration with DSM. In addition, Anterra Capital, a specialist venture capital investor active in the food and agricultural sectors, will attend the conference to scout for investment opportunities across the food supply chain in technology-driven companies.Given the anticipated high demand to attend and exclusive nature of the conference, ‘Connecting Bright Innovations 2017’ will be by invitation only. Invitation requests, together with supporting documentation, are due on or before 23 June 2017. Finalists will be announced by 7 July 2017 and invited to the event.