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The Almeria company Beyond Seeds receives one of the five distinctions awarded by the Social Council of the UGR for its contribution to the transfer of knowledge
The Almeria group Beyond Seeds has received new recognition, this time, from the University of Granada (UGR) , which has awarded it one of its XXII Social Council Awards, corresponding to the 2023 call, for its contribution to the transfer of knowledge, as well as for its activities developed jointly with the UGR.
This was announced by the UGR itself, after the meeting of the Plenary Session of its Social Council, held on December 21, which took into account the work being carried out by Beyond Seeds and which contributes to promoting the social projection of the University of Granada through the practical application of knowledge expressed in transfer processes, innovation, research contracts, entrepreneurship, as well as through activities to disseminate science, technology and culture, mainly.
For the Beyond Seeds Group, “this recognition represents the culmination of more than seven years of public-private work and research in collaboration with the University of Granada, a period in which new doctors have been trained, new lines of research have been opened using seeds as a basis in the field of health, for the prevention of cancer and metabolic syndrome, which have had a successful result, with the development of six patents, of which two are carrying out preclinical work and using nanodrugs, and new generation nutraceuticals have been developed for the prevention of metabolic syndrome, which have culminated in the launch of startups such as Nanointec, which is one of the few nanotechnology companies in Europe that uses nanoparticles for use in biomedicine and agri-food. ”, highlights the president of Beyond Seeds, Francisco Bermúdez . “This is one more motivation to maintain this close public-private collaboration between the UGR and the Beyond Seeds Group, which we consider fundamental for the general interest of society,” adds Bermúdez.
In these XXII Awards of the Social Council of the UGR, whose award ceremony was held this Thursday in the Paraninfo of the Faculty of Law of Granada, Beyond Seeds is accompanied by the following winners: with the Award for the career of young researchers, the doctors Pompeyo Gabriel Ortega Lozano, from the Area of Social and Legal Sciences, Arts and Humanities; and Trinidad Montero Vílchez, from the Area of Sciences, Health Sciences, Engineering and Architecture; the Department of Computer, Automatic and Robotics Engineering of the UGR, for its activities or potential for knowledge transfer to companies or institutions; the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia, for its actions in the field of strategic internationalization aimed at the development of the University of Granada, or the social and productive fabric of Granada; and the Granada International Music and Dance Festival, for their actions in social areas or good social practices.
Awards received
The biotechnology group Beyond Seeds and the Cellbitec Foundation stand out for their concern in the search for alternative uses for seeds, added to the ability to articulate alliances with leading companies and entities, among them, the Biomedical Research Center of the University of Granada, the CIB Margarita Salas-CSIC , the Technological Corporation of Andalusia , the Andalusian Institute for Agricultural, Fisheries, Food and Organic Production Research and Training ( IFAPA ) and the University of Almería , among others.
As a result of these strategic alliances, in 2023, CaixaBank has awarded the Cellbitec Foundation and its biotechnology group Beyond Seeds one of its 'Solidarity Awards' for their generosity and solidarity work, whose altruistic work generates a positive impact on society. Likewise, Cellbitec has received the Ícaro Entrepreneurship Practices Award, for covering the largest number of curricular practices in the entrepreneurship modality during the 2022/2023 academic year.
Previously, in 2022, the Spanish Association of Scientists awarded the Cellbitec Foundation a Plaque of Honor in the category of entities and companies for its commitment to innovation and research, its commitment to public-private collaboration and its mission focused on contributing innovative solutions to some of the most pressing problems of our current society.
And, more recently, during the last edition of Fruit Logistica, it won the 2024 Innovation Award (FLIA) for Zucchiolo, the new vegetable developed by Beyond Seeds and marketed by Unica Group. which also has a marked social character, since 50% of the profits generated by its sales are allocated to research in the fight against pancreatic cancer and degenerative diseases, through the Cellbitec Foundation.
