Australian biotech: Opportunity for growth

Ruth Beran looks at some of the many highlights expected at the 2005 AusBiotech national conference in Perth, which kicks off on Monday.

Building on last year's conference in Brisbane, which focused on the topic of 'Going Global', the 2005 AusBiotech conference will look at 'Linking the Region'.

The conference will explore themes such as growth opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region, drug development in Australia, commercial applications of agricultural biotechnology, the future of stem cell therapy, and the pitfalls and difficulties in taking out intellectual property.

With speakers and strong delegations from countries such as India, Singapore, Malaysia, Korea, Japan, Taiwan and New Zealand, as well as South Africa, the UK, and USA, the conference looks set to live up to its focus of linking the region.

Regional speakers

Perth's location -- it's closer than eastern seaboard cities to regional biotech hubs like India and Singapore -- means that many international delegates is expected at this year's conference. "Last year we had some 25 per cent of the delegates from outside of Australia, and we fully expect to exceed that in Perth," says Ian Edwards, chair of this year's conference. "We're expecting some excellent regional participation from the Asia-Pacific. In that regard we've got a leading keynote speaker -- Dr Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, from India, for the opening plenary session."

A biotech entrepreneur, Mazumdar-Shaw is chairman and managing director of Indian biopharmaceutical development company Biocon (see feature interview). The company had revenue of over US$200 million in 2004, a 34 per cent increase over the previous year, making it "an Indian success story", Edwards says. "I think that sets the tone for a strong regional emphasis."

Simon Carroll, director of the Western Australian Biomedical Research Institute and AusBiotech's chairman, says that: "This year the notion is that biotechnology is involved in linking the region, and for the first time we've gone out in a very directed manner and sought speakers from around the region."

Carroll believes that the Asia-Pacific region could be the third trading bloc in biotechnology. "You've got Europe, North America, and then instead of this thing called 'the rest of the world', countries in the Asia-Pacific such as India, Australia, Singapore and Korea, could to a large extent work together to make a very powerful contribution to the biotech industry," he said.

Also building on the theme of linking the region, Korean stem cell expert Dr Woo-Suk Hwang will talk about the future of stem cells in therapy in a session chaired by Australian Stem Cell Centre chairman Dr Hugh Niall on the final day of the conference.

Other keynote speakers include BioSingapore's executive director Roland Yap, Pfizer's senior vice-president for science and technology Dr Peter Corr and Prof John Anderson from UK company Sensor Technology & Devices.

Agricultural biotech

"Agbio also gets a strong representation at the conference," says Edwards, who also chairs AusBiotech's agbio advisory board. Three sessions at the conference are devoted to agricultural biotechnology.

Dr Clive James, the chairman of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agribiotech Applications, will be talking on the role of genetically modified crops in meeting global food, feed and fibre needs. "One of the things that Dr James will raise is how the world is moving on in adoption of agricultural biotechnology while Australia, with the notable exception of cotton, is at a standstill at the present time," says Edwards.

Dr William Wilson, from North Dakota State University in the US, will discuss consumer trends and marketing challenges in the global trade of GM crops. "He's uniquely positioned to discuss that, having consulted for major companies and also run a number of independent economic analyses of GM crops and their impact globally," says Edwards.

At the same session, Australian Cotton Research Institute's Dr Ian Taylor will be talking about weed control in cotton and Dr Darren Schleibs from CSR will speak about how the sugar cane industry, which "has been struggling in recent years, is really transforming itself through biotechnology," said Edwards.

Other sessions at the conference related to agriculture include one on animal biotechnology chaired by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, another on preserving global food security and a session on biodiversity and bioprospecting.

Participation

Sponsored by the Western Australian government, the conference will be officially opened by state premier Geoff Gallop, and state development minister Alan Carpenter, will welcome delegates at a reception on the Sunday prior to the opening.

"There are a number of good initiatives that have been made by the WA government, in business matching for people who are coming to Perth and need to be put into a partnering situation, or a chance to meet up with WA companies while they're in town," says Edwards.

Federal industry minister Ian Macfarlane will also be at the conference, chairing Mills Orator Dr Leanna Read's session.

Edwards says that the conference is a "tremendous networking event".

"It's that personal contact, it's the discussions and the exhibition hall around the booths and in some of the private meeting rooms that really bring people together," he says. "It's also a sharing of some of the challenges as well as the opportunities that the biotechnology industry faces."

And the business partnering sessions that are a usual feature of AusBiotech conferences are filling fast, says Edwards.

Carroll agrees that companies coming to the conference will gain business advantage in a number of ways, by finding partners for their technologies, learning more about the issues affecting the industry and by "working with governments on how to be able to construct a framework for operation".

The AusBiotech 2005 conference begins in Perth on November 21. Details: www.ausbiotech2005.com