The Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion – Research Innovation and Academic Excellence Since 1954
The Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering at the Technion is among the few academic units worldwide that bring together, under one roof, the fields of Biotechnology Engineering and Food Engineering: two key disciplines at the forefront of scientific and industrial innovation. Since its establishment in 1954 as the “Section of Food and Biotechnology Engineering,” the Faculty has led significant breakthroughs, shaped the development of Israel’s food and biotechnology industries, and educated generations of engineers who hold leading positions in academia and industry.
The origins of the Faculty date back to 1953, with the appointment of a committee tasked with examining the need to establish a department for food technology. The committee, chaired by Dr. Yosef Broverman, who at the time served as the scientific attaché at the Israeli Embassy in London, recommended the creation of an independent “section”. Accordingly, in 1954, the section was founded under the almost prophetic name “Food and Biotechnology Engineering”.
In 1967, with the endorsement of the Technion’s administration, the section was upgraded to the Department of Food and Biotechnology Engineering. The transition from a section to a department, and later to an independent faculty in 1992, was accompanied by an expansion into new areas of biotechnological research, including drug development, tissue engineering, antibiotic alternatives, smart food systems, and more.
Throughout its history, the Faculty has made substantial contributions to the development of Israel’s food and biotechnology industries – both through collaborative research and partnerships, and through the training of engineers who occupy key positions in the biotechnology, food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics industries, as well as in startups across these sectors.
Today, the Faculty comprises approximately 500 students at all stages of academic training, from undergraduate studies through doctoral programs. Teaching and research are led by an outstanding, young, and dynamic faculty, working across a wide range of advanced laboratories operating at an international level. Education at the Faculty is inherently multidisciplinary, integrating engineering with the life sciences.
Special emphasis is placed on hands-on training in innovative laboratories, ensuring a learning-by-doing approach. As part of this vision, the Karseo Center for Innovation in Food Technologies is currently being inaugurated – the first center of its kind in Israel in the field of foodtech. The center includes a semi-industrial pilot facility, a fermentation laboratory, an industrial kitchen, sensory evaluation rooms, and advanced laboratories. It provides a unique infrastructure for teaching, research, industry collaboration, and the development of foodtech and biotech innovation.
Among the wide range of fascinating research conducted at the Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering are:
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Controlled drug delivery systems for cancer treatment and cell therapy
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Tissue engineering for medical applications and cultivated meat
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Development of biological sensors for medical diagnostics
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Biotechnological methods for the production of pharmaceuticals and alternative proteins (as substitutes for animal-based proteins) and more.
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Bioinformatics for accelerating cancer diagnosis and treatment
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Personalized nutrition solutions and the development of food fortification systems that enhance essential nutrients without compromising taste or appearance
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Synthetic biology and more
Our future engineers operate at the cutting edge of scientific innovation, leading solutions to the challenges of tomorrow—from human health and food security to environmental sustainability.
In the photograph: A lecture on “Food Chemistry,” led by Prof. Yosef Broverman, founder of the section and head of the Food Engineering Laboratory at the Technion.
Photographed by Gedalia Anosh, July 1956, at the Technion campus in Hadar.
