Andrea Muñoz Garcia is a Senior Consultant at the NNFCC, working on a number of European funded projects. She plays a key role in the Pilots4U project which focuses on creating a European-wide network for the scaling up of bioeconomy innovations. Andrea also works on the ShikiFactory100 project, which aims towards the production of 100 compounds of high-added value using state-of-the-art synthetic biology techniques; Andrea’s main roles in this project are the performance of sustainability appraisals and the development of business models for some of the new compounds.

Andrea completed a PhD at the Green Chemistry Centre of Excellence, in York. Her work focused on the recovery of precious metals such as gold and palladium from water waste sources using bio-based adsorbents. She also studied the preparation and utilisation of bio-based materials for the construction of energy storage devices. During her PhD, she also worked for WasteValor, a project partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund, which offered free, short-term advice about waste valorisation to SMEs based in the region of Yorkshire.

Previously, Andrea completed the MSc in Green Chemistry & Sustainable Industrial Technology at the University of York as part of an international exchange programme during the final year of her BSc in Chemistry, which she coursed at the Universidad de Zaragoza, Spain.

Recent projects

Pilots4U

Andrea is key contributor to the 2-year project Pilot4U, funded by BBI JU, which has created an accessible network and database of open-access pilot and demonstration facilities for the European bioeconomy.

As part of this project, NNFCC led the design and implementation of an online survey to understand the needs of bio-based industries regarding pilot and demonstration equipment. NNFCC also performed a gap analysis exercise to identify gaps in provision in the current landscape of open-access pilot and demonstration infrastructure and led the development of business cases to address these gaps in provision.

ShikiFactory100

Andrea is NNFCC’s contact point for the ShikiFactory100 project. This 4-year project is funded by H2020 and intends to produce 100 high-added value compounds for applications in cosmetics, food and pharma utilising the latest synthetic biology developments.

NNFCC will use its expertise on bio-based products, its extensive network and comprehensive market knowledge to perform a sustainability appraisal for the 10 most promising compounds, which will include an overview of political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors. The outcomes of these analysis will be used for the development of business models for these compounds, which will cover all key business criteria, from key partners and resources to value proposition, cost structure and revenue stream.

Andrea is also in charge of the project communication and dissemination activities, playing a key role in the design, development and maintenance of the project’s communication channels.