BioMADE is a Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) established in April 2021 and headquartered across Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota and Emeryville, California. It was founded with a seven-year, $87 million award from the U.S. Department of Defense and is part of the national Manufacturing USA network. In March 2023, its budget was increased by a further $450 million. Its mandate is to develop a sustainable, domestic end-to-end bioindustrial manufacturing ecosystem in the United States, with a particular focus on enabling the production of industrial chemicals and materials using biological systems.
BioMADE operates across three core program areas:
- Technology & Innovation - developing technologies to enhance U.S. bioindustrial competitiveness and reduce the risk of investment in manufacturing infrastructure
- Education & Workforce Development - expanding the biomanufacturing workforce through training and education initiatives
- Safety and Security - addressing biosafety and biosecurity considerations specific to industrial biomanufacturing
In addition to these programs, BioMADE operates a Pilot Plant Network that provides members and partners with pilot-scale infrastructure to support manufacturing scale-up and demonstration. It also acts as a connector between government agencies and private sector companies, facilitating access to technologies and products in an agile and cost-effective manner.
BioMADE provides funding, collaboration opportunities, and resources to its members, with the overarching aim of establishing a resilient domestic industrial biomanufacturing base. Its work sits at the intersection of federal manufacturing policy, industrial biotechnology, and workforce development.