After a construction period of more than a year, the new Avebe Innovation Centre at the Zernike Campus in Groningen, the Netherlands, was officially opened by René Paas, King’s Commissioner for the province of Groningen.

The new innovation center combines knowledge and stimulates cooperation. Avebe employees have now started working at the center on innovations in the field of potato starch and potato protein, the company explains in a press release. The first startup has already moved into the building and the next companies are already eager to become part of this innovation hotspot in Agrifood.

Built by construction consortium BAM/Trebbe on behalf of project developer Triade, the building includes a laboratory, a test facility, offices and a customer innovation center. Avebe has moved all its existing lab facilities to the new building at the Zernike Campus in Groningen. The Groningen knowledge institutes GroningenUniversity, University Medical Centre Groningen and Hanze University of Applied sciences Groningen create a strong link when it comes to cooperation in education and research.

In addition to Avebe’s own space for offices and research, the building also has space for startups in the Innolab Agrifood, developed by Campus Groningen and partners. Innolab Agrifood stimulates and facilitates entrepreneurship. It provides lab facilities, but also business support, including in the areas of business development, strategy, intellectual property and patenting. This Innolab presents opportunities for students and innovators to further develop their own initiatives. Bert Jansen, Avebe’s CEO: “Innovation is in our DNA and helps us to achieve a good return for our members, not only today but also in the future. By combining forces, this can now be done faster, better and more efficiently. This will enable us to respond even better to market developments.”

During the opening, more than 200 guests experienced for themselves what is happening in the area of potato starch and potato protein innovation. Visitors were given the opportunity to visit the laboratories after the festive opening ceremony to see for themselves and sometimes also to taste the products in which the ingredients from the potato are used. Potato starch and protein are used in food, animal feed, construction and industry.

Photo explanation: Bert Jansen, René Paas en Edward van der Meer (Triade).