Guest: Ilan Sobel; Topics: We discussed the Israeli company BioHarvest, products, space plant growth, the benefits of microgravity, products for space and products for Earth, plus timelines, costs, regulations and many other related topic or important issues concerning plant cell growth in space, especially for cannabis.
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We welcomed Ilan Sobel, CEO of BioHarvest, to the show to discuss his company, plant cell growth in microgravity as well as here on Earth, products including cannabis for in space growth and usage. Mr. Sobel first started with a general description of BioHarvest and what they do, stating that they have a unique technology platform. As I have done in the past, if you follow the key words and tags repeated below, you will have an excellent short summary of the program.
Tags/key words: "Ilan Sobel, BioHarvest Sciences, patent-protected bio-farming technology, plant cell growth, unique technology platform, the French Paradox, bio reactors, health benefits of red grapes, company products, VINAIA, CANNABIS, OLIVIA, POMIA, Space Tango, microgravity environment, NASA testing, space costs, commercial space stations, cellular meat, Advisory Board, early stage investing, product consistency, space settlement, modified bio reactors, biological breakthroughs, products for use in space, products for use on Earth, regulatory environment, commercial space timelines, gravity prescription for different space bodies, company priorities, ISS concerns, nutrition in space."
In addition to the short summary provided by the tags, some standouts to me included the expected performance and quality gains by doing their research and experimentation in microgravity as compared to here on Earth. Ilan discussed the microgravity benefit throughout our discussion so don't miss it. Your comments about this enhancement would be most welcome on our blog. Another standout was the product based on red grapes, VINIA. This product is available from their website, https://bioharvest.com. Later in the program when Ilan started discussing the company interest in cannabis, that too was of interest and the hook that led me to this company and their being on The Space Show.
Later in the program, Ilan talked about their working with the company Space Tango (https://spacetango.com) regarding the microgravity experience. Space Tango has been operating in the space environment for sometime so I took this to be a good sign given they have an experienced operating partner. Another area of interest that is also an area of great interest to Space Show listeners was the subject of microgravity as compared to operating on the Moon with 1/6th gravity or growing their plant cells with Martian gravity. Don't miss how Ilan responded to the listener questions and calls addressing this issue.
Later in our discussion, Ilan talked specifics about the challenges for cell sustainability. Listen to what he said the requirements were for a kilo of product and then C02. He then broke it down for a tomato so check out the differences. Cannabis in space was discussed at length as expected since it was the hook for doing this program in the first place. Our guest talked about transformational power, a game changer with a time line of 10 years. Listen to his story for the details, then tell us what you think about it by posting on our blog.
Before the close of our program, Ilan was asked about concerns in the regulatory arena regarding what his company does. I thought it was interesting when he said the technology would be leading the regulatory world for quite sometime. In addition, it was not something that concerned him at this time. Before ending, time lines were brought up and Fremont John called about microgravity in free space, lunar gravity and Martian gravity. His call took us a bit deeper into the subject over what was discussed earlier on.
For the summary I asked our guest to prioritize what needed to be done to accomplish their time line. I wanted him to share the priority list with us. Once again, Ilan deferred to Space Tango. Before ending, I did ask if he has a Plan B if the Russian pulled out of the ISS and it was no longer available. Earlier he talked about commercial space stations but note what he said in response to the question. Before ending, I read an email from Marshall about the nutritional content of his plant growth. Listen to his question and again, share your thoughts with us on the blog.
Please post your comments/thoughts for this guest and show on our blog. You can reach Ilan Sobel through the BioHarvest website or me.
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