IIT Madras Opens Plant Bioreactor Accelerator

IIT Madras has launched a three-year accelerator program with Herbalife funding, providing plant biotech startups access to plant cell bioreactors and lab facilities in Chennai.

Up to three startups a year working in plant biotechnology will gain access to plant cell bioreactors and laboratory facilities in Chennai under a new three-year accelerator run by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) and Herbalife International India, the Indian subsidiary of US-listed nutrition company Herbalife. The Herbalife-IIT Madras Phyto Innovation Accelerator Programme was inaugurated earlier this month by Union Minister of Education Pralhad Joshi at IIT Madras Research Park. Its scope covers plant biotechnology, nutraceuticals, functional foods, botanical ingredients and sustainable biomanufacturing. The programme runs two tracks. Under the first, called Phytothon, IIT Madras will hold innovation challenges and hackathons twice a year to select candidates. The startups chosen will be able to use shared facilities at the IIT Madras Bioincubator, including customized bioreactors for plant cell cultivation, analytical and computational systems, and will receive technical mentorship, pre-incubation support and help with proof-of-concept development. The second track, the Global University Innovation Network, covers links with institutions abroad through student and faculty exchanges, joint research, short-term courses and co-organised conferences. “Innovation in health and wellness increasingly depends on strong collaboration between academia and industry.” “Innovation in health and wellness increasingly depends on strong collaboration between academia and industry. Through the Herbalife–IIT Madras Phyto Innovation Accelerator Programme, we aim to create an environment where promising scientific ideas can access the expertise, infrastructure and industry perspectives needed to progress beyond the laboratory. We hope the programme will help nurture the next generation of innovators while contributing to India’s growing leadership in biotechnology, sustainable innovation and health-focused research,” said Ajay Khanna, Managing Director of Herbalife India. The accelerator operates out of the Herbalife-IIT Madras Centre of Excellence on Plant Cell Fermentation Technology, which opened in June 2026 and grows plant cells in bioreactors to produce herbal biomass and phytochemicals. The centre was funded through Herbalife India’s CSR programme, according to the company’s April announcement. It is now adding more custom plant cell bioreactors, HPTLC analytical equipment, cryogenic storage and a GPU workstation for bioinformatics and AI-based research. “At IIT Madras, we believe that translating research into real-world impact requires strong collaboration across academia, industry and the entrepreneurial ecosystem. The Phyto Innovation Accelerator Programme represents an important step towards creating a platform that enables scientific discoveries to evolve into real-world applications. By bringing together talent, technology, infrastructure and mentorship, this initiative will help foster innovation and strengthen India’s capabilities in plant-based biomanufacturing,” said Prof. Smita Srivastava, Faculty Coordinator of the programme and Head of the centre. Thank you! Please confirm your newsletter subscription in the email we just sent you.

Read source: Cultivated X