Kerry marks first anniversary of advanced enzyme capabilities in Leipzig facility

GERMANY – Kerry marked the first anniversary of operations at its Biotechnology Centre in Leipzig, highlighting advances in enzyme discovery, engineering, and bioprocess development for food, beverage, and biopharmaceutical applications.

The facility, which began operations in 2025, strengthens the company’s research and development capabilities as manufacturers seek more efficient, sustainable and high-performance production solutions.

Spanning 10,000 square metres, the centre brings enzyme discovery and enzyme engineering teams together in a shared laboratory environment to accelerate scientific collaboration and shorten development cycles.

Its infrastructure combines bioinformatics, fermentation, strain engineering, machine learning, and artificial intelligence (AI) modelling, supporting biotechnology solutions from early-stage discovery to scale-up and commercial production.

During its first year, the Leipzig team achieved several scientific and operational milestones.

These included successfully producing enzymes in filamentous fungal cultures for the first time and migrating Kerry’s proprietary ENESYZ technology platform to a cloud-based architecture.

Supported by next-generation sequencing, AI, and machine-learning-assisted directed evolution, the platform is designed to improve enzyme discovery and make advanced research tools accessible across Kerry’s global operations.

The centre also automated the screening of 17,500 enzymes to identify suitable candidates for specific applications.

The facility has also supported the commercialization of new biotechnology products.

CellTrypase, a recombinant enzyme developed for biopharmaceutical manufacturing, became the first development launched directly from the centre.

Kerry also shipped Denarase High Salt to 108 customer testing sites, supporting applications in biopharmaceutical production, including processes associated with advanced therapies.

In the food and beverage sector, the company secured a positive scientific safety opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) for Acrylerase, an amidase enzyme designed to reduce acrylamide in instant coffee and coffee substitutes without changing product yield or taste.

Acrylamide can form during high-temperature processing and concerns food manufacturers because of its potential health risks.

The technology gives manufacturers another option to meet food safety requirements while maintaining product quality.

Ronan Moloney, Kerry’s vice-president of Enzymes, said biotechnology has evolved beyond a processing aid into a strategic innovation tool that helps manufacturers address complex production challenges without compromising taste or quality.

He highlighted the integration of enzyme discovery, strain engineering and pilot-scale production as central to translating scientific advances into commercially viable solutions.

During its inaugural year, the centre hosted more than 400 external guests across five major industry events, reinforcing its role as a hub for scientific exchange and customer collaboration.

Kerry’s investment in Leipzig builds on its broader biotechnology development strategy, including the 2022 acquisition of German biotechnology specialist c-LEcta.

As food, beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturers pursue greater efficiency, functionality and sustainability, the centre is expected to play an important role in developing next-generation enzyme technologies for global markets.

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