Striking a Balance Between Scholastics, Innovation & Entrepreneurialism
H2NutriO™
The 7th of November saw the conclusion of the Catalyst 2024 grand finale, a biotechnology pitch competition which was hosted by UVU Bio and the sector disrupting start-up Immobazyme, whose early incubation and acceleration occurred at the Institute for Plant Biotechnology (IPB). The esteemed panel of judges Santosh Ramchuran (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, CSIR), Sandra Clelland (Von Seidels), Daniel Strauss (Stocks and Strauss), DheepakMaharajh (CEO, UVU Bio), Dominic Nicholas (CEO, Immobazyme) had their proverbial “hands full” with the innovative ideas pitched by the 7 finalists.
While the competition was fierce, there was such impressive talent showcased that the judging panel created an impromptu runner-up prize for the outstanding Meghan Oosthuizen from H2NutriO™, who was awarded three months at the UVU Bio Labs and an amazing opportunity to work toward a scale-up project with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
Meghan is a MSc. candidate at the Institute for Plant Biotechnology and, represents the first structured project offered by the innovation hub of the IPB. Working together with Drs. BiankeLoedolff and Jeannine Marais (Department of Food Science) – the challenge is to focus the MSc. study into venture which develops a quick-to-market relevant product while assisting in developing real-world graduate attributes in business. Bianke is an essential pivot to the innovation hub, in her capacity as both an embedded extraordinary appointment and the founder and CEO of Biosupport.
Congratulations to the team for representing us with such distinction at Catalyst 2024 and, a special thanks to both UVU Bio and Immobazyme for stimulating the emergent Biotechnology ecosystem in the Western Cape and beyond.
