Bioeconomy support announced in Falkirk Growth Deal

The UK Government, Scottish Government and Falkirk Council announced that the Falkirk Growth Deal Head of Terms had been agreed, with the headline that the deal will attract £1bn of investment and up to 2,000 jobs in an Investment Zone for Falkirk and Grangemouth. 

The Investment Zone is set to be made up of a number of projects, with the long-term investment hoping to result in the creation of centres of excellence in biotechnology as well as skills and innovation being among the list of ambitions. To support this, key innovative industry projects will include £10m for a Bioeconomy Accelerator Pilot Plant to develop new sustainable processes using feedstocks such as food processing and whisky by-products, and £4m for an Innovation Skills Transition Centre that will be led by Forth Valley College delivering a programme for local school and college students gaining the right skillset that will help local industry and their supply chains. 

IBioIC – as a key project partner of Falkirk Council alongside Scottish Enterprise and industry partners – welcomed the news and was delighted to see government-backed support for initiatives that will help to drive Scotland’s bioeconomy and support the just transition for the region. 

Image from Falkirk Council, ‘Falkirk Growth Deal set to attract £1bn investment and 2,000 jobs’: https://www.falkirk.gov.uk/news/article.aspx?aid=7026