New biotechnology facility in Delft

The completion of this new biotechnology centre is part of a €100 mill. investment program by DSM to scale up R&D in the Netherlands since 2013. The centre, which offers the broadest range of biotechnology specialisations under one roof, clusters innovation and is housing over 400 research and development staff.

The new Biotechnology Center is a further step in the development of the site in Delft, where DSM Food Specialties has its global headquarters. The company has expanded the site in Delft over the years, including building a large, modern food and application centre. DSM has also invested together with other industry players in a biotech fermentation pilot plant on the Delft site. The Delft site is also an important location for a number of industrial productions such as antibiotic intermediates and yeast extracts and flavours.

Innovations currently under development in the new biotechnology centre include the production of fermentative steviol glycosides – the reduced-calorie, sweet-tasting molecules in the stevia plant – as an answer to the growing global demand for sugar-reduced food and beverages. Also, DSM scientists in the biotech centre have developed a new technology that turns an inedible agricultural by-product of rapeseed, or canola, into valuable plant protein for a wide range of uses in food. These ‘proteins of the future’ address the increasing demand for protein globally.

DSM’s Biotechnology Center will be named the Rosalind Franklin Biotechnology Center in honor of pioneering scientist Rosalind Franklin (1920–1958), whose extraordinary work during a tragically short life and career significantly contributed to our understanding of the structure of DNA, effectively creating the basis for modern biotechnology. By honouring Rosalind Franklin, DSM says it pays tribute to all female scientists.