[1] Deposits to the collection can be made for research purposes (for example to name a new species), or for inclusion into patent submissions.
When support from the Scientific Civil Service was withdrawn the collection was transferred to the University of Aberdeen and was supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) after recommendations from the Office of Science and Technology (OST).
NCIMB Ltd. was created as a wholly owned subsidiary of Aberdeen University Industrial Services (AURIS) in 1982[5] and the transition to a private company was overseen by Dr Ivan Bousefield, the curator from 1974-1990.
At this time the company also became an International Depository Authority (IDA)[6] under the Budapest Treaty, and began storing plant seeds, plasmids, fungi and microorganisms that need to be filed alongside patent applications.
This was a result of the Government's response to the OST review, that suggested the NCFB no longer met the needs of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF)[7] In 2000, NCIMB Ltd. was fully spun out from the university and became an independent, privately-held company[8] NCIMB Ltd. continues to manage the National Collection of Industrial, Food and Marine Bacteria under the direction of Dr Samantha Law, the current curator.