SEOUL, April 14 (AJP) - To address food supply instability caused by climate change, Professor Park Yong-chul was selected for a government-funded core research project to develop precision fermentation technology using food-grade yeast, Kookmin University said Tuesday.
The project, titled "Development of a genetic tool kit for the food yeast Candida utilis for precision fermentation and application to food material production," is part of the 2026 Basic Research Program. The initiative is overseen by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF). The Core Research category specifically supports creative individual researchers to help them grow into leaders in their respective fields.
Professor Park and his team at the Department of Convergence Bioengineering will use synthetic biology to build a genetic toolkit for Candida utilis. These toolkits consist of biological parts and modules used to modify the yeast's genome. This engineering allows the yeast to produce essential food ingredients, such as proteins and amino acids, more efficiently.
The research aims to establish domestic production methods for these materials, reducing South Korea's reliance on imported food resources. By using precision fermentation, the team hopes to create a stable supply chain for various food ingredients that are increasingly threatened by global environmental shifts.
The research team has a history of developing microorganism-based technologies to produce health-related materials, including human milk oligosaccharides, glutathione, and terpenes. They are also expanding into the bio-chemical sector, focusing on the production of biodegradable plastics and methods for capturing carbon dioxide using modified yeast strains.
The professor has received multiple commendations from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy for his work in CRISPR-based engineering and fermentation. He also serves as the founder of BioCraft, a company dedicated to commercializing yeast technologies developed in the laboratory.
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