Biotechnology appears to be dead

Biotechnology seems to have taken a back seat this year at Pittcon, the huge annual laboratory conference and exposition held in the US.

The conference is being held in New Orleans this year and organisers confidently expect more than 25,000 visitors will visit more than 2500 booths in the exhibition hall.

The major players held their press conferences at the beginning of the conference and they all had much the same message to convey.

The word ‘biotechnology’ was not used even once in passing. All the companies mentioned the same four areas of interest: food and food safety, water and water testing, fuel and biofuel analysis, and air quality and environment monitoring.

The pharmaceutical industry was still an area of interest, but pharmaceutical process monitoring and real-time online analysis for increased productivity and efficiency was the focus.

Investment in research and biotechnology was not on anyone’s agenda.

All of the companies were quizzed about the effects of the possible US recession on their business and they were alike in reporting that they were not aware of any impacts so far, but were keeping a close eye on the situation.

Every company mentioned ‘emerging economies’, particularly China and India, as both potential clients and potential competitors.

There was an increasing trend to provide holistic solutions that would meet regulatory needs as well as analytical needs, as companies thought they could negate the Chinese threat by having importers specify the analytical requirements of goods before they reach the US.

Interestingly, every company has decided to focus on food security. It is no doubt perceived to be a recession-proof area and at the same time address the concerns about ensuring food safety in a global economy.

Neither Australia nor New Zealand were mentioned in any press conference by anyone. But the first company that looked to be interesting in the exhibition hall turned out to be from Brisbane!

Janette Woodhouse