Modesto-based effort on bioindustrial jobs gets another $10M from state
For the second time this summer, the state has granted about $10 million toward bioindustry in and near Stanislaus County.
The latest $10.4 million was allotted Friday, Aug. 29, by the California Jobs First Council. The other $9.8 million, announced July 1, included $1.8 million from that program and an $8 million line item in the new state budget.
These are early steps toward creating tens of thousands of jobs turning crop and other waste into climate-safe fuels and materials. The largest piece would be a test site for bringing ideas to commercial scale, at about $175 million.
The latest grant will help with current efforts to support startups and train people for the jobs. It is overseen by BEAM Circular, based in Modesto. The acronym stands for BioEconomy Agriculture & Manufacturing.
“This funding is a game-changer,” CEO Karner Warner said in a news release. “It positions the North San Joaquin Valley as a rising national leader in the circular bioeconomy, and ensures that the benefits of job creation, innovation and sustainability are shared across our communities.”
The testing grounds would be at a Stanislaus County site that could be selected in a few months. The partners include an East Bay federal lab that can do only small batches, the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit.
The region already reuses some of its abundant waste, such as gas from dairy cattle manure and hulls from nut harvests. New ventures could use the stems and skins from wine grapes or the orchard wood that used to be burned in the open. Tuolumne and nearby mountain counties could send wood thinned from their fire-prone forests.
The effort grew out of the Stanislaus 2030 report, released in 2022. It called for about 40,000 well-paying jobs in and near the county. It also fosters small business in general, including home-based childcare.
The funding to date totals about $45 million. This includes $10 million from Stanislaus County’s share of federal pandemic relief, approved last year. Another $35 million is from state, federal, business and philanthropic sources.
California Jobs First announced a total of $80 million in grants to 11 applicants Friday. They include aerospace and defense on the Central Coast, life sciences in Los Angeles County, and high-tech farming at UC Merced and other sites.
