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Market map: Africa Middle East non-medical biotech
Africa & Middle East Non-Medical Biotech — Market Map (DRAFT, September 2026)
Scope: industrial biotech & bio-based materials, agricultural biotech & AgTech, food biotech, environmental & marine biotech, plus bioenergy, forestry and restoration. Pharma, diagnostics, devices and veterinary medicines are excluded.
Region: all of Africa and the Middle East (Gulf, Levant, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Yemen). Cyprus is out. Scope decisions (carried over from the Americas dataset, owner 2026-09-25):
- Local subsidiaries of groups from outside the region (e.g. Hazera/Limagrain, Netafim/Orbia, Adama/Syngenta, Illovo/ABF, Real IPM/Certis Belchim, Algatech/Solabia) are excluded.
- Region-origin companies headquartered abroad (common for Israeli companies) are kept, filed under the home country.
- No country may exceed 40 % of the dataset (
COUNTRY_CAP = {"*": 0.40}, applied to discovery). - Public research bodies and international research centres (Volcani, KALRO, ARC, IITA, ILRI, ICIPE, ICBA …) are included. Universities and associations are not.
- Countries under broad sanctions regimes (Iran, Syria, Sudan …) are included but marked † (informational).
Status: drafted from model knowledge, then vetted with
check-map(2026-09-25); 1 foreign-owned entry removed (see bottom).
Israel#
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Evogene (NASDAQ: EVGN) | Computational biology / AI for crop traits, ag-biologicals and chemistry | |
| Kaiima | Crop genetics (enhanced ploidy breeding) | |
| BioBee | Biological pest control: beneficial insects and mites, sterile-insect technique | |
| Equinom | AI-driven seed breeding for high-protein crops (pea, sesame) | |
| ICL Group (NYSE: ICL) | Specialty fertilizers, biostimulants, food specialties and phosphate-based ingredients | |
| Volcani Institute (Agricultural Research Organization) | National agricultural research institute (public) |
Food biotech#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Aleph Farms | Cultivated beef | |
| Remilk | Precision-fermentation dairy proteins | |
| Imagindairy | Precision-fermentation whey and casein | |
| Redefine Meat | Plant-based whole-cut meat | |
| Steakholder Foods (NASDAQ: STKH) | 3D-printed plant-based and cultivated meat and fish | |
| Amai Proteins | Designer sweet proteins by precision fermentation | |
| Phytolon | Natural food colours by yeast fermentation | |
| Brevel | Microalgae protein produced with light-assisted fermentation |
Industrial biotech & bio-based materials#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| TIPA | Compostable flexible packaging |
Turkey#
Industrial biotech & bio-based materials#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Pakmaya | Baker’s yeast and fermentation products | |
| Konya Şeker | Sugar-beet processing, bioethanol |
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| May Seed (May Tohum) | Hybrid seed breeding (vegetables, corn, sunflower) | |
| Hektaş (BIST: HEKTS) | Crop protection incl. biologicals, seeds, animal health | |
| TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center | Public research incl. genetic engineering and biotechnology |
Gulf states#
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) | United Arab Emirates | Saline and desert agriculture research (international) | |
| Pure Harvest Smart Farms | United Arab Emirates | Controlled-environment agriculture in hot climates |
Industrial biotech & bio-based materials#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emirates Biotech | United Arab Emirates | PLA bioplastics plant project |
Environmental & marine biotech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Aquaculture Group (NAQUA) | Saudi Arabia | Integrated shrimp and fish aquaculture |
North Africa#
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sekem | Egypt | Biodynamic agriculture, biofertilizers and biological pest control, herbal products | |
| Agricultural Research Center (ARC Egypt) | Egypt | National agricultural research (public) | |
| OCP Group | Morocco | Phosphate fertilizers, biostimulants and soil-health solutions (state-owned) | |
| INRA Maroc | Morocco | National agricultural research institute (public) |
South Africa#
Industrial biotech & bio-based materials#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Sappi (JSE: SAP) | Dissolving pulp, biorefinery products (xylose, lignin, nanocellulose) | |
| CSIR | Council for Scientific and Industrial Research incl. biomanufacturing (public) |
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Omnia Holdings (JSE: OMN) | Fertilizers, biostimulants and biological crop nutrition (Omnia Nutriology) | |
| Agricultural Research Council (ARC) | National agricultural research (public) |
Bioenergy (ethanol, biogas)#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Tongaat Hulett | Sugar, ethanol, cogeneration (Southern Africa) |
Food biotech#
| Company | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|
| Mzansi Meat | Cultivated meat |
East Africa#
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya Seed Company | Kenya | Seed breeding and production (state-owned) | |
| KALRO | Kenya | Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (public) | |
| ILRI | Kenya | International Livestock Research Institute (HQ Nairobi) | |
| icipe | Kenya | International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (HQ Nairobi) | |
| EIAR | Ethiopia | Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (public) | |
| NARO | Uganda | National Agricultural Research Organisation (public) |
Environmental & marine biotech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sanergy | Kenya | Insect protein (black soldier fly) and organic fertilizer from sanitation waste |
West & Southern Africa (other)#
Agricultural biotech & AgTech#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| IITA | Nigeria | International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (HQ Ibadan) | |
| Seed Co Limited (ZSE: SEED) | Zimbabwe | Hybrid maize and other seed breeding across Africa | |
| Zamseed | Zambia | Seed breeding and production |
Bioenergy (ethanol, biogas)#
| Company | Country | Focus | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| Omnicane | Mauritius | Sugar, bioethanol and bagasse energy |
Excluded after check-map (foreign parent, scope decision 1)#
- Kenya Biologics: Eléphant Vert Group (HQ Serris, France)
Method note#
Draft written 2026-09-25 from model knowledge as a seed list; not live-verified. Verify with check-map.