Translating excellence in biotech research into economic and societal value

Letter from EuropaBio's Chairman, Steen Riisgaard

EuropaBio Chair Steen Riisgaard addressed EuropaBio's 2008 General Assembly and called for consistency and predictability from policy makers.

Dear Reader,

With my term as Chairman of EuropaBio's Board nearing its end, this letter is an opportunity to revisit EuropaBio's achievements and challenges during my time in office. During my time as Chair, we have worked hard with policy makers to develop a strong and coherent regulatory environment for the biotech industry.

One of EuropaBio's goals is to put patients at the centre of healthcare policy decisions. Collaborating with patient groups, we believe that an informed and empowered patient is the way forward. This philosophy is reflected in our work on an EU policy on rare diseases that respects the patient's right to treatment. EuropaBio is calling for a more harmonised approach to how orphan medicines are assessed and to improve access to orphan medicines in Europe.

The life sciences industry faces unique challenges to translate excellence in research into economic and societal value, because of its long research and development time lines. Despite the over 50 billion EUR invested in the EU into innovative research, more needs to be done to put a policy framework in place that actively rewards those who are creating world class biotech products - even if the rewards are not immediately apparent. EuropaBio is pushing policy makers to get rid of rules that hamper innovation and fail to reward world class innovators.

EuropaBio's response to this need is the "access to finance platform" for biotech SMEs. Together with the European Commission, we are bringing together SMEs, venture capitalists, financing bodies, representatives from the EU institutions and other stakeholders. It is important to us to bring together all the stakeholders - economic value can only be created if innovative research is linked to economic policy that stimulates and supports the commercialisation of innovation. The goal is to identify the roadblocks for SMEs in the areas of policy and regulation and also facilitate their access to finance.

Industry must be able to plan its innovation and development work as efficiently as possible. At our meeting with EU Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou in June 2008, we stressed the need for policy coherence - consistency and predictability in approval processes for all products. For example, 50 GM products are awaiting approval in the EU, 19 of which are crops for cultivation. There is a backlog of dossiers at EFSA for GMO products. EuropaBio is working with policy makers to find a solution to this problem.

EuropaBio along with Member Company representatives met with Commissioner Vassiliou in June 2008 and stressed the need for economic policy that supports the commercialisation of innovation.

Biofuels were a hot topic in 2008 and I would like to highlight EuropaBio's success in working with the European Institutions on the Climate Action and Renewable Energy Package. It is important that the emerging biofuels sector be built on sound sustainability principles and EuropaBio's work will help ensure that the renewable energy directive will provide Europe with environmental, social and economic benefits.

The Lead Market Initiative on bio-based products is another example of how EuropaBio is working to ensure equitable access for biotech products. The LMI will open up new channels for companies producing bio-based plastics, biotextiles, bio-based materials and bio-dyes as well as many more biotechnologies that can be applied to Europe's traditional and new industries.

EuropaBio is working to make sure that biotechnology can address a multitude of societal problems, making the world healthier and cleaner while decreasing hunger for the world's poorest. These are big goals, but biotech is not just a promise anymore - it is delivering!

As my term nears its end, I would like to thank my colleagues at EuropaBio and EuropaBio's member companies for the efforts over the past two years that have been made to make Europe a place where biotech can thrive.

Sincerely,

Steen Riisgaard
Chairman of EuropaBio's Board of Directors, President & CEO of Novozymes