Jeonbuk National University (JBNU)-operated (Foundation) Center for the Promotion and Support of Microbial Industries for Agriculture and Livestock (Director: Professor Kim Dae-hyuk; hereinafter the Microbial Center) has been selected for the '2022 Science and Technology Project Opening the Region's Future' supported by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Research and Development Special Zone Promotion Foundation.

As a result of this selection, a total of KRW 9.9 billion will be invested, including KRW 4.75 billion of national funding and KRW 2.375 billion each from North Jeolla Province and Jeongeup City, to carry out the project 'Commercialization of Functional Composite Preparations for Productivity Improvement and Carbon Reduction Based on the Intestinal Microbiome of Production Animals Using Living Labs.'

'Microbiome' refers to the microbes that live inside the body and their ecosystem (biome), and research on it is being conducted across various fields. The core of this research project is to develop technologies that use the intestinal microbiome to improve productivity of production animals and to reduce carbon emissions.

Through this project, the JBNU Microbial Center will use the intestinal microbiome to improve the productivity of cattle and pigs and conduct research to control greenhouse gas emissions. In particular, on-site demonstrations targeting farms in Jeongeup City are planned to secure practical effectiveness, so it is expected to provide significant benefits to actual livestock farms.

The project involves North Jeolla Province, Jeongeup City, and Jeonbuk Technopark. Participating as joint research and development institutions are the lead organization (Foundation) Center for the Promotion and Support of Microbial Industries for Agriculture and Livestock; the JBNU Animal Molecular Genetics and Breeding Project Group; the Jeonbuk Branch of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology; the Jeonbuk Branch of the Safety Evaluation Research Institute; and Innovation Management, among others.

In addition, Woojin B&G Co., Ltd., Jeongeup-based Bioten Co., Ltd., and Jeongnong Bio Co., Ltd. will participate as collaborative research organizations for development and commercialization.

An official from Jeongeup City said, "Through this project, we expect to build an innovative ecosystem for intestinal microbiota in livestock by utilizing North Jeolla Province's strong microbial research capabilities and infrastructure, and to enable North Jeolla Province to lead the microbial industry through cooperative links between local companies and local farms."

Meanwhile, the (Foundation) Center for the Promotion and Support of Microbial Industries for Agriculture and Livestock (Director: Professor Kim Dae-hyuk), located in Sinjeong-dong, Jeongeup City, has supported efficacy verification, mass cultivation, and industrialization for more than 220 agricultural and livestock microbial product manufacturers nationwide since its opening in 2017. It has established 23 different microbial safety analysis systems, including gas chromatography, and on that basis serves as a testing, analysis, and certification institution for agricultural and livestock microbial products to support the safety evaluation and industrialization of domestic companies' microbial products. In February, it was selected by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for the country's first GMP-based public infrastructure competitive project in the microbial sector, worth KRW 10 billion, and has played a major role in Jeongeup's emergence as a mecca of South Korea's microbial industry.