PhD in Biochemistry, from University of Bath, Oct 2010
| co-founder, CSO | |
|---|---|
| FutureAlgae ltd (est. 2024), formerly Future By Insects Ltd (est. 2021). Previously also co-founder and CSO at start up Liberty Produce Ltd (2018-2023). | |
Year entered into a non-academic position: 2018
Left academia after: After a 2 successive 3 year-long Knowledge Transfer (KT) fellowships, with a 6 month Research Assistant position in between to fill in the gap.
What’s your background?
I did my studies in France, focusing on Agronomy (that is the study of soil and crop management and production) and Plant Biotechnology (think plant genetics and GM crops), first with what is a HND-equivalent, then an MSc (further focusing on the chemistry of plant secondary metabolites) and and MRes (crop production management, and biotech). And each year, I spent 4-6 months on placements in industry and/or research centers.
Why did you move away from academia?
My career in academia was not very ‘academic’ per se. My PhD was sponsored by industry and very geared towards taking things to a pilot once proven in the lab. My post-doctoral/KT fellowship positions were even more applied, and involved developing tech at lab-scale and, in close collaboration with industry, taking these studies further and designing, developing, commissioning, and running in-situ pilots. I also realised I was not going to progress to a tenure/permanent position, nor did I really want to.
Is there anything you miss about academia?
Being part of a larger organisation with access to specialist instruments and equipment, interdisciplinary expertise, and access to literature, when not OpenAccess which is a particular challenge.
How did you get this job? Did you face any challenges when considering a move away from academia or applying for the role?
I left academia following my last, quite intense post doc, to have a few months break after working for months on end. Following discussions with a friend, I decided to go in start-up mode instead of returning to academia, still following my passion for sustainability in the areas of water, fuel, feed, and food in agriculture in collaboration with a very entrepreneur-minded scientist friend. We began in early 2017, planning collaborations and writing a business plan to be a vertical farm producing salads for the consumer.
A vertical farm, or ‘plant factory with artificial lighting’ as they are called in SouthEast Asia, is in effect a box, a hangar, industrial unit etc, within which environmental conditions are controlled (humidity, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), temperature (water, air), lighting (photoperiod, light colour(s)), etc,), and that is stacked high with shelving onto which are trays of growing plants. Vertical farms are mainly producing greens (salads, spinach, aromatics), but in a vertical farm, since one controls all the environmental conditions of light, fertilizer, temperature, CO2/O2 etc, and every crop can be grown, with recent ventures with strawberries, and other specialty crops. Although you could grow staple crops (wheat, rice etc), it is not economically viable.
And so, in 2018 we co-founded a vertical farming technology company, pivoting to be a tech supplier. We had that going for 5 years, through COVID, growing from a team of 3-4, up to 15 employees at our peak in 2022. Unfortunately, the business didn’t make it in the end and we called it quits in autumn 2023.
In 2021, I also co-founded Future By Insects Ltd, where we raised insect larvae on food manufacturing waste. We secured investment earlier this year via the Carbon 13 Barclays Eagle Labs venture launchpad, and are re-focusing the business : we are transforming the CO2 emissions and capturing nutrients from the water used in the food industry into valuable nutrients through the use of microalgae, to create a nutrient-rich feedstock, in a process that doesn’t compete with food and agricultural systems.
What motivated you to/why did you choose the sector you transitioned into?
I’ve been passionate about sustainability since studying agronomy. I started my career in biotech, as I do believe Genetically Modified crops can be a large part of sustainable solutions for agriculture. During my time in academia, I became further interested in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA). Upon discussions with a Professor/entrepreneur, I decided one way to pursue making an impact was to go into entrepreneurship within that sector.
Did you think you had the skills required for your current position before you started? Were you right?
I had some of the skills, at least scientifically; but was at the start a bit shy about the business side of things. Luckily, I had a great and experienced co-founder.
How did your PhD prepare you for your current job? For example, what were the transferable skills that you developed during your PhD that are most relevant to your current job?
My PhD was in partnership with industry and really focused on practical application, working towards a pilot. I dealt with a fairly wide range of activities, from biology to engineering.
Did you have any preconceptions about your sector that proved to be wrong?
Not really – in the early to mid 2010s, the Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) sector was really coming into its own thanks to developments in LED technology, and it was a really exciting time. Though there were some huge investments into some start-ups led by entrepreneurs with no background in agronomy; and there was a microalgae biofuels bubble that burst badly. That did some damage to the sector a few years later.
Can you describe a typical week in your job?
As in any young and developing business, there are a lot of meetings and calls for communicating with potential partners/collaborators -industrial and/or academic, potential customers, and also competitors; we also have daily catch-up calls within the team, as there are only 3 of us co-founders at this moment in time; we are hoping to grow the team by the end of the year.
I spend my time scouting the market for new tech, and looking at potential sources of funding (UKRI calls etc).
I design and run experiments, and design and develop our forthcoming pilot bioreactor with a collaborator in Europe.
What is the workplace culture like? Please include comments on work-life balance, flexibility, remote working?
In our current set up, I am the only one on site in the lab whilst one of the other co-founder lives in NYC! Yes, really! But in my previous startup LibertyProduce, we had up to 15 staff, 10 located in a London-based office and lab. The atmosphere was very relaxed and we got on extremely well enjoying lots of out of work pub meets, board games, pub quizzes, etc, as well as the possibility of working from home and/or flexible hours when applicable. For a time we even provided lunches from a local cafe and did ‘bring your dog to work’ days; we had lots of plants and an office aquarium.
Do people with a PhD frequently get hired in the company/sector?
While we are not recruiting until later this year, we will certainly be looking for a Process Engineer, and/or (Bio)Chemical Engineer (degree alongside industry experience), and possibly a technician to assist me here in the lab (no degree necessary but ability to learn quickly various things (algae culturing, running experiments, and a bit of electronics/coding) and with a do-it attitude.
What are your favourite parts of your job?
Definitely the practical parts, and thinking of and designing something new, that could make a change to the sector.
What are your reflections on your career path?
I’ve been a bit of a Jack-of-all-trades at times. I could have stayed in the industry pre-PhD and probably be in a mid-managerial position by now, with a reasonably good salary and pension. But I like doing things and decided to ‘stay in the lab’. Financially, it may not have been the best decision overall, but I enjoy my job, I like what I am doing, and I find plenty of fulfilment in it.
We live in a crucial time for our planet, with Anthropogenic climate-change wreaking havoc on our planet : are we not seeing catastrophic floods, insane temperatures, and the potential for the collapse of the Atlantic Overturning Circulation (AMOC) currents (think gulf stream)? And so being involved in something that has potential do participate in the global efforts to combat our greenhouse gasses and carbon emissions, is really fulfilling.
Do you have any advice for current graduate students and postdocs considering a career outside of academia?
Do what makes you happy. Academia can be a great career, although in my opinion it is a bit of a pyramid scheme (there’s only one professor at the top) but life outside academia can be very fulfilling – you have plenty of transferable skills.
What do you know now that you wish you’d known when exploring a transition?
In my case, because it is my own start up (as a co-founder), I wish I’d thought a bit more about the lack of a security net. Thankfully, I have a very supportive network, family, and, most of all, my partner.
Can you recommend any relevant resources, organisations or events that might help somebody new to the sector find out more about it?
Industry associations, networks, and LinkedIn.
