Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR), a leading global provider of ingredient solutions for food, beverage and industrial applications, announced investments of more than $100 million to increase efficiency, modernize equipment and also install an energy cogeneration system at its Indianapolis facility.

This project will expand Ingredion’s capabilities for delivering texture innovations to growing end markets while bolstering the economic viability and sustainability of the Indianapolis plant. Furthermore, by upgrading its energy infrastructure, Ingredion will improve operational efficiency and reliability while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“As Ingredion has driven volume growth for texture solutions over the past several quarters, these investments will expand our capacity and support future customer growth,” said Valdirene Evans, senior vice president and president, global texture solutions at Ingredion. “Additionally, these investments will enable the Indianapolis plant to continue to lead in supplying the highest quality and most innovative specialty starch-based texturizers for global customers.”

“These investments are a win-win as it helps us modernize and improve our agility in delivering Texture & Healthful Solutions for our customers while also increasing our energy efficiency and improving our cost competitiveness,” said Eric Seip, senior vice president, global operations, and chief supply chain officer.

The project is expected to be completed in the second half of 2026.

Brings total deployable capital raised to date to $125 million and will enable completion of first biomanufacturing plant in Richmond, Indiana

Liberation Labs has closed a convertible note with $31.5 million in new capital, which, combined with $19 million of insider bridge notes raised during 2024, brings the total raised in its $75 million convertible note round to $50.5 million. The round included new capital from NEOM Investment Fund (NIF), Galloway Limited and Meach Cove Capital, as well as from existing funders, including Agronomics, New Agrarian Capital and Siddhi Capital. The new capital will enable the completion of construction of Liberation Labs’ first biomanufacturing plant in Richmond, Indiana.

“The strong support from both existing and new investors is validation of our team, technology and go-to-market strategy,” said Mark Warner, founder and CEO of Liberation Labs. “We look forward to completing construction of our facility, starting up operations in 2025 and filling a crucial supply gap for biomanufacturing in the U.S. market.”

Liberation Labs is in the late stages of constructing its first commercial-scale, purpose-built, precision fermentation biomanufacturing facility with a capacity of 600,000 liters and a fully dedicated downstream process (DSP). The plant will produce a range of bio-based materials, including building block ingredients for food, chemicals and other industrial products at a scale and cost that will fill a pressing need among both new and established consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies and other industrial manufacturers.

“Liberation Labs is developing state-of-the-art fermentation infrastructure to transform the world’s existing fermentation capacity,” said Jim Mellon, Director of Agronomics. “This will help build a future where precision fermentation proteins reach the industrial scale needed to meet growing demand in the US and across the world. This novel approach has never previously been attempted. The completion of this significant funding raise showcases the consistent and growing demand from startups, large multinational corporations, and governments alike and is testament to the strength and successful execution of the team led by Mark Warner.”

Combined with other public sector awards and loan guarantees, Liberation Labs has raised a total of $125.5 million in deployable capital. The new funding brings the total private capital raised to $71.5 million. In addition, Liberation Labs has secured equipment financing of $30 million and a U.S. Department of Agriculture Loan Guarantee of $25 million. The company also received a $1.39 million award from the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to conduct a detailed feasibility study (engineering and market analysis) for the addition of a full flexible-use, commercial-scale 4,000,000-liter bioindustrial manufacturing facility adjacent to its flagship facility.

Upon successful completion of the Prototype Assessment and Planning phase, Liberation Labs may be selected to proceed to the Prototype Build phase, which would provide up to $100 million for building new facilities or expanding current facilities for bioindustrial manufacturing.

Velocity empowers innovators to develop solutions in bioinnovation, farmer-focused innovation and food is health; Registration deadline is January 24

AgriNovus Indiana, an initiative to grow the agbioscience economy, announced today the launch of Velocity, a six-month agbioscience accelerator to inspire the creation of tech-enabled businesses to address many of the toughest challenges facing the food and agbioscience economy.

In partnership with the Indiana Corn Marketing Council, Indiana Soybean Alliance, Elevance Health, Beck’s Hybrids and Ag Alumni Seed, Velocity challenges students, startups and existing companies to create solutions to fill research-defined gaps in three critical areas: bioinnovation, farmer-focused innovation and food is health. The entrepreneur who presents the top solution in each of these three gaps will receive $25,000.

“Bioinnovation, farmer-focused innovation and food is health are the top three forces of change that will shape the next chapter of our agbioscience economy,” said Mitch Frazier, president and CEO of AgriNovus. “Velocity creates a powerful new platform for innovators to explore these forces, identify unique approaches to address the opportunities they create and develop solutions to uniquely solve some of the world’s toughest challenges in agbioscience – from the future of food to improving farm profitability.”

Velocity’s central focus on addressing the three forces of change include:

BioInnovation

There is an unprecedented demand for bio-based innovation globally as many are increasingly look to replace petrochemicals with renewable solutions, such as alternative fuels, green chemistry and more sustainable and bio-based products – from packaging to cosmetics. Needed innovations may include:

Farmer Focused Innovation

Farmers face compounding risks – from weather variability and variable commodity markets to regulatory uncertainty and ever-evolving consumer preferences – adding uncertainty to a challenging business. Needed innovations may include:

Food is Health
Fourteen percent of all households in the United States experience food insecurity, adults in those households are 15.3 percent more likely to have chronic illnesses and 19 percent of commercially insured patients over the age of 18 list access to healthy food as a health-related social need. Needed innovations may include:

Velocity’s three tracks will be guided by research and strong mentorship throughout the six-month accelerator. The program will culminate with a demo day event and winning check presentations on June 18, 2025.

Companies, individuals and entrepreneurs who want to participate in Velocity can access more information and a registration link here. The deadline to register is January 24, 2025.

The launch of Velocity aligns with a recent report from EntreWorks in partnership with AgriNovus and the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership (CICP). The study, Unlocking IP: Leveraging Indiana’s R&D Assets to Boost Entrepreneurship, recommends continued growth of challenge series to further entrepreneurship and innovation across the state. Velocity is an evolution of AgriNovus’ previous Innovation Challenge Series focused on farmer innovation and food security.

Winners to be announced at Mira gala in February 2025

TechPoint, the industry-led growth initiative for Indiana’s digital innovation economy, today announced the finalists for the 2025 Mira Awards, commonly known as “The Oscars of Indiana Tech.”

The 133 finalists emerged from 221 submissions that were evaluated by a team of independent judges. Twenty awards – including one Emerging Leader and two Tech Company of the Year awards – will be presented at the Mira gala at The Palladium in Carmel on February 27, 2025.

“Mira is always a very special time of the year for the entire community to come together,” said TechPoint President and CEO Ting Gootee. “The live judging was an uplifting experience to see so many innovators mingling and talking about what they are building for the future.”

Now in its 26th year, TechPoint’s Mira Awards are designed to elevate the most innovative companies in Indiana’s tech ecosystem. Thousands of Indiana digital innovation companies have sought the annual recognition, but only 329 Mira Awards have been presented. Learn more about the Mira Awards here.

Mira finalists are highlighted below by award categories. Additional awards that do not identify finalists are Deal of the Year, TechPoint Trailblazer, TechPoint Foundation for Youth’s Bridge Builder Award and Nextech K12 Computer Science Teacher of the Year.

AgriNovus Indiana Agbioscience Innovation Award

 

BioCrossroads Life Sciences Innovation Team Award

 

Community Impact Award

 

Conexus Indiana Manufacturing Innovation Award

 

Digital Transformation of the Year

 

Exceptional Employer of the Year

 

Higher Education Innovation Award

 

Resilience Award

 

Rising Entrepreneur of the Year

 

Innovation Service Partner of the Year

 

Startup of the Year

 

Talent Impact

 

Tech Company of the Year 

 

Tech Innovation of the Year

 

Emerging Tech Leader of the Year

Greg Deason has been appointed chief operating officer for Purdue Research Foundation, effective Feb. 1. Deason will work closely with Chad Pittman, who recently was named PRF president and CEO following Brian Edelman’s retirement, also effective Feb. 1.

Deason, currently PRF’s senior vice president of alliances and placemaking, will work with Pittman to provide leadership for the foundation’s strategic operations and business processes.

“For decades Greg has served the Purdue community and will continue to do so in his new appointment,” said Mitch Daniels, Purdue University president emeritus and chair of the PRF board. “He is a proven leader, and I’m certain he will continue the momentum of impactful growth and strategic use of PRF as a tool for fulfilling Purdue’s land-grant mission.”

“Greg Deason is an outstanding choice for this critical role,” Purdue President Mung Chiang said. “His dedication and execution have resulted in Greater Lafayette becoming a preeminent ecosystem for job creation and economic growth. We appreciate Greg’s experience in and focus on cultivating community, enabling growth and connecting companies to Purdue’s world-class ecosystem.”

Before leading the Alliances team in empowering partners to impact the world, Deason served as PRF’s executive director of Purdue Research Park from 2004-16. In that role, he led the team that transformed the park in West Lafayette into an engine for Indiana’s economic development initiatives. He also was instrumental in the creation of three other technology park locations in Indiana beyond West Lafayette.

“Greg has a long career of serving Purdue and PRF’s valued partners, who have made the university the launchpad for their next giant leap,” Pittman said. “He has been instrumental in facilitating the attraction and retention of companies like Saab, SEL, Inari and SK hynix during his time at PRF. I’m confident he will continue his legacy of impactful initiatives and keep up the momentum and equity we have built with our partners.”

“I am pleased to welcome Greg into this new position,” current PRF President Edelman said. “He has proven his capacity to be an outstanding leader who always does the hard work to develop a vibrant community for innovators, entrepreneurs and strategic partners at Purdue, Greater Lafayette and across Indiana.”

Deason also served in various positions at Purdue’s Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship. His career there culminated in his appointment as director of innovation and entrepreneurship, a role in which he led the team that created Purdue Foundry and built a world-renowned entrepreneurial and innovation ecosystem at the university. That work resulted in over 350 startup companies, placing Purdue at No. 3 for company creation in the nation at the time.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to take on this new role within PRF,” Deason said. “Purdue provides incredible opportunities for businesses and innovators to turn their ideas into impact across the state, country and world. I look forward to working closely with Chad in the coming years to make sure that the companies and people who choose Purdue get what they need to be successful and thrive in this community.”

Deason also served as the president of the Association of University Research Parks and received its Career Achievement and Outstanding Research Park awards.

A Boilermaker through and through, Deason graduated from Purdue with a bachelor’s in agricultural economics. In 2010 he was named an Outstanding Alumnus of Purdue University and remains active in service to the College of Agriculture and Purdue through the Griffin Society, President’s Council and John Purdue Club.

Food is the only economy in the world that touches every person on the planet. We are all connected to food, and one of the world’s top marketers turned entrepreneur is now making the connection between farms, food, and people. Scott Nelson, CEO of Make Hay, joins us to talk all things consumers and connecting to the meaningful world of agriculture. We get into:

The existing gap between farms, food and people – and the opportunity to leverage today’s media landscape to connect all three.
His time at Panera and how it shaped his viewpoint on storytelling for brands.
How Scott’s background brought him to Make Hay + what the company aims to do.
Make Hay’s relationship with Purdue’s DIAL Ventures and High Alpha, and how it’s accelerating their business.
Scott’s vision for Make Hay – creating content for food transparency at scale, consumer awareness and farmers at the center of it all.
Where Make Hay is at today and what’s ahead.

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