News Releases

UWI Showcases Investment-ready Innovations & Commercial Opportunities at Business Breakfast

For Release Upon Receipt - December 23, 2025

St. Augustine


St. Augustine, Trinidad & Tobago, December 22nd 2025 - The commercial potential and investment-ready innovations emerging from The University of the West Indies (The UWI) St. Augustine Campus were placed firmly in the spotlight at the Second Principal’s Business Breakfast, held on Thursday 27 November 2025 at the University Inn and Conference Centre. Hosted by Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Campus Principal, the event brought together more than 40 senior industry leaders from across Trinidad and Tobago, providing a platform to showcase the campus’s growing portfolio of market-driven products and opportunities for industry collaboration.

 

 Pro Vice-Chancellor and Campus Principal, Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, delivers remarks at the Campus Principal’s Business Breakfast 2025, hosted at The University Inn and Conference Centre on 27 November 2025.

 

The campus principal has always maintained that universities are not just centres of learning, but strategic investment partners. Professor Antoine underscored that when business invests in the University, it gains access to research-driven innovation, emerging talent and solutions grounded in local and regional realities. More importantly, she emphasized that the Campus is open for partnership, open for collaboration and committed to converting research and ideas into measurable economic and social value.

Additionally, The St. Augustine campus has developed a dynamic portfolio of transformative initiatives over the years and this event offered an invitation to engage with opportunities designed to deliver real value and impact and the engagement signaled the campus’s intention to share its indigenous and innovative products, services and commercial opportunities.

During the breakfast, The UWI team presented six innovative product lines currently positioned for commercialisation. These included UWI Fine Cocoa, featuring locally produced chocolate products; University Field Station Milk, the only fully pasteurised milk produced in Trinidad and Tobago; Biophyte, a bioprotectant that enhances plant growth and disease resistance; OJA001, a Sargassum-based BioStimulant that promotes plant development; IdenTT, a groundbreaking locally developed fingerprint identification technology; and Seal-It, which is an industrial and marine grade asphalt-based sealant.

 The UWI Spirit Chocolate and UWI University Field Station milk on display at the Campus Principal’s Business Breakfast 2025, held at The University Inn and Conference Centre on 27 November 2025

Participants were also introduced to a range of commercial investment opportunities embedded within The UWI’s physical and academic infrastructure, including the University Inn and Conference Centre and the planned University Plaza, a development expected to significantly enhance the northern corridor of the campus.

Research, development, innovation, and entrepreneurship are essential to progress in any country and much of that work is happening at the St. Augustine Campus. Recognizing that many may not have been fully aware of the depth and scale of the innovation and entrepreneurial activity taking place across the Campus, Professor Antoine explained that this is really about reacquaint the business community with what we do on the campus.

Given the university’s research-driven focus, Professor Antoine used her platform to emphasize the breath of the campus’s work stating, “too often, The UWI St Augustine remains one of the country’s best-kept secrets. What happens at The UWI St Augustine some of you may know, some may not know or may have forgotten. Certainly, in terms of our innovation and entrepreneurship, many of you may not be aware of all that happens at the Campus.”

In addition, attendees explored opportunities for collaboration linked to the Global Medical School, an initiative designed to expand medical education through an internationally focused MD model. The event concluded with a presentation on the advancement of Bis (indol-3-yl) methanes and related compounds, emerging research with strong potential as antibiotic adjuvants capable of inhibiting key enzymes in pathogens associated with antibiotic resistance. This work highlights promising pathways for strategic internal investment and research-driven commercialisation.

Among the distinguished guests were the Honourable Satyakama Maharaj, Minister of Trade, Investment and Tourism, and His Excellency Guillaume Pierre, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Embassy of the French Republic.

As the next steps, companies were warmly encouraged to engage in discussions and initiate partnership opportunities with The UWI St. Augustine Campus. The aim is to foster mutually beneficial initiatives that not only enhance shared profits but also contribute significantly to national development. 

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About The University of the West Indies

The University of the West Indies (The UWI) is the Caribbean’s premier higher education institution and one of only two regional universities in the world. With five campuses across the English-speaking Caribbean and global centres in partnership with universities in North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe, The UWI continues to be a beacon of academic excellence, research innovation, and societal impact. Consistently ranked among the world’s best by Times Higher Education (THE), The UWI is a global leader in addressing critical challenges, including climate change, sustainability, and development.

As The UWI St. Augustine Campus celebrates its 65th anniversary in 2025 under the theme Beyond 65: From the Caribbean, For the World, it pays tribute to its Caribbean roots while highlighting its contributions to solving global challenges. This milestone underscores the campus's significant role in producing ground-breaking research and fostering talent that transcends regional boundaries to shape a better world. The UWI St. Augustine’s researchers, academics, and graduates continue to make an international impact, exemplifying the university’s mission to serve the region while influencing the world.

Learn more at www.uwi.edu 

 

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