We're building global innovation bridge between St Louis and India: Bio-STL

Bio-STL and AgVaya launch Global AgXelerate to connect Indian agri-tech and bioscience startups with global markets and investment opportunities

Bio-STL, a not-for-profit organisation based in St. Louis, has been at the forefront of nurturing bioscience and agri-tech innovation for over two decades. It recently collaborated with India-based advisory firm AgVaya to jointly launch a global collaboration platform called Global AgXelerate, aimed at bridging the gap between innovation and global markets in food and agriculture.

 

AgVaya was founded by industry leaders to fill the critical need for practical, sustainable solutions in agriculture and food businesses — going beyond conventional advice to driving real transformation.

 

In this interaction, Bio-STL’s founding president and chief executive officer (CEO) Donn Rubin and its global lead, Vijay Chauhan, explain how the organisation has helped build a thriving innovation ecosystem in the US Midwest and how it now plans to extend that success through collaborations in India. They were also joined by Ram Kaundinya, founder of AgVaya.

 

So, what kind of work does Bio-STL do exactly? 

Bio-STL was established nearly 25 years ago with a primary mission to build the innovation economy in the St. Louis region.

 

We aim to leverage the area’s historic strengths in human health, plant science, and agriculture by fostering an entrepreneurial community that turns scientific and technological strengths into new start-ups.

 

Over the 20th century, St. Louis was a headquarters city. Recognising the need to adapt, our founders focused on leveraging scientific and technological strengths for future growth.

 

We have been building and orchestrating an innovation ecosystem for over two decades. Now, to capitalise on those great discoveries and brilliant ideas, we are turning them into start-ups.

 

We’re building an innovation economy by aligning start-ups, capital, talent, physical infrastructure, and supportive policies to create an environment in which start-ups can thrive. This is central to our mission of advancing innovation in our region.

 

How many start-ups have you funded or promoted in the past two decades? 

We have supported over 400 start-ups.

 

How much is the total investment? 

We’ve invested $50 million. Those companies have raised $3 billion.

 

Which are some of those companies? 

One company that was featured today is called Covercress. Covercress is a new crop that balances sustainability and profitability.

 

Where is this company located? 

It’s in the US. It was acquired by three major companies — Bayer CropScience, Bunge, and Chevron, the oil producer.

 

What is the corpus of funding you have? 

We receive philanthropic funding from universities, corporations, foundations, and individuals who are passionate about the work we do — either because they support our region and want to see it thrive economically, or because they care about seeing innovations that would otherwise sit on a shelf make it into products that can help improve the human condition — whether in solving hunger and food security issues or in curing and treating diseases.

 

We raise money every year, and our budget is about $20 million annually.

 

What other means of fundraising do you have?

  We have philanthropy funding, but we also compete for federal US government and state grants.

 

When we have a good year, there could be an exit from one of our start-ups, resulting in a financial return from the investment. And because we’re a non-profit, those profits go back into the organisation’s mission and are part of our budget.

 

When a company is sold, since we are an investor, we get proceeds from the sale. That money does not go to shareholders — there are no shareholders — only philanthropic foundations that encourage us to create more such companies.

 

Which is the biggest philanthropic organisation that supports you? 

Probably the James S McDonnell Foundation. John McDonnell, the chairman of our board, is the son of the founder of McDonnell Douglas, established in the 1930s.

 

McDonnell Douglas was one of the largest aircraft, space, and defence companies. It eventually merged with Boeing, and the family’s wealth, through its foundations, has been a major supporter of our work.

 

Which Indian companies are you working with? 

India has not been at the table until now. This collaboration is all about that. We want to help the best innovation from around the world enter the US market.

 

For us, India was always very interesting, but we didn’t know how to access the market — it’s huge. You can go to Delhi and find 20 incubators.

 

That’s one part. The other part is that innovation we’ve brought from around the world to St. Louis for the US market could also work very well for India. There’s a two-way opportunity.

 

Are these innovations purely bioscience-related — animal health, plant health, or human health? 

Animal, plant, and human health. In St. Louis, we have one of the biggest concentrations of agriculture and food corporations headquartered there.

 

Such as Bayer CropScience — its crop science division is headquartered in St. Louis. Anheuser-Busch, the beer company, is headquartered here; its InBev brand is globally known. Nestlé has a business called Nestlé Purina — its pet food division is headquartered in St. Louis. Bunge, a major grain processor like Cargill and ADM, is also based here.

 

If you’re a start-up in India wanting to do business with these big companies, we are the partner that can help set up that relationship.

 

Why haven’t you come to India earlier, given its strong start-up ecosystem? 

It’s a big, complex place, and we hadn’t found the right partner. Now we feel we have a great partner who can help us access the market and understand its nuances.

 

India is a regulatory-driven market. Given that US–India relations have often been tense over agricultural trade, does this concern you? 

It doesn’t worry us. These are the parameters within which you work to identify innovation that will succeed in a specific environment. It has to be farmer-friendly, grower-friendly, legal, and fundable.

 

Investors need to see a clear pathway. If that pathway is blocked by a wall, it’s not an investable company. There has to be a viable business plan.

 

Does it worry you that India doesn’t allow genetically modified (GM) crops? 

Even with the status quo today, there seems to be a tremendous opportunity for innovation. Removing such policy barriers could make a real difference here.