Darja Nelson
Operating Partner, Bridgewest Ventures
Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder, Tertiary Extracts Ōtautahi
Dr Rob Kelly is Chief Scientific Officer and co-founder Tertiary Extracts Ōtautahi. He has 28 years experience in development and commercialisation of biobased innovations in the nutritional, personal care, medical device and pharmaceutical fields. In 2024 he co-founded Tertiary Extracts Ōtautahi Limited (TEO), a biotech company specialising in advanced alternative protein extraction, pioneering the future of dietary wellness with a focus on women’s health, using New Zealand biologicals. TEO delivers science based ingredients to global health and nutrition markets to solve unmet needs in women’s health, while enhancing the value of New Zealand’s primary products. TEO’s Ovitage® biotechnology solution converts sheep skin by-products of the meat industry, into high nutritional value, bioavailable proteins. This process not only reduces environmental impact of waste produced by the New Zealand primary sector but also satisfies unmet global market needs in health and wellness. TEO sells the branded ingredient range Ovitage® and the finished product range Everee Women™.
Operating Partner, Bridgewest Ventures
Director of Science and Innovation, BioSouth
Chief Innovation Expertise Officer, Callaghan Innovation
Executive Director, Healthcare, Research at E&P Financial Group