Evonik, one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals, signed a purchase agreement for acquisition of the probiotics business of the Spanish company Norel, a global supplier of animal feed ingredients.
The agreement sees Evonik acquiring Norel’s probiotics product portfolio as well as the company’s site in León (Spain). The business will be integrated into Evonik’s Animal Nutrition Business Line. The parties have agreed not to disclose details of the transaction.
Adisseo, a world leader in nutritional solutions and additives for animal feed, and Novozymes have entered into a partnership to develop and market probiotics for poultry.
The term start-up has burst on the political agenda of the Italian government. First with the Minister Corrado Passera, who in the period past at the Ministry for Economic Development was able to approve the decree Development 2.0, now with Premier Enrico Letta, who in the start-ups sees a fundamental tool to solve the tragedy of youth unemployment and who recently promised to “remove barriers and bureaucracy” to set up a business.
In the various sectors of the bioeconomy, there are many start-ups founded in Italy in recent years. One of these is Micro4you, a spin-off of the University of Milan, specialized in the production of micro-organisms for a variety of uses: from the restoration of historical monuments to animal health. In this interview, its CEO, Annalisa Balloi, tells how is a young innovative company and what are the real problems that it faces. Since “for those who – like us – focuses its attention on niche products, the administrative procedures are too complex and expensive”.
Interview by Mario Bonaccorso
IL BIOECONOMISTA 