Industrial Biotechnology: Discovery to Delivery

Abstract

Bioprocessing technologies have been evolving over the past several decades with fermentation products finding applications in almost every aspect of our daily lives. They are used in ethical and generic drugs, clinical and home diagnostics, defense products, nutritional supplements, personal care products, food and animal feed ingredients, cleaning and textile processing, and industrial applications such as fuel ethanol production. Even before knowing about the existence of microorganisms, for thousands of years ancient people routinely used them for making cheese, yogurt, soy sauces, and bread. Despite its long historical use as the method of choice for manufacturing, it is only in the recent time that fermentation has been recognized for its vast potential toward sustainable industrial development.