The EU biotech and biomanufacturing initiative is a unique opportunity for the EU to take urgent and immediate actions to support the scale up of the EU biotech and biomanufacturing sector. This must be coupled with a regulatory environment that encourages investments in research and development, fosters innovation and market access. The EU must also provide incentives that attract the best in class for skills, in both business and biomanufacturing.

Building on its strong science and research base, and the EU Commission’s recent announcements on its ambition for European leadership in new technologies, Europe now needs to create impact from these good intentions and to reinforce its competitiveness.

We have identified specific key asks for a globally competitive EU Industrial biotechnology sector that delivers sustainable innovative solutions.

1. Need for harmonised national and EU frameworks for enabling biotechnology;
2. Address regulatory hurdles to accelerate market access and enhance global competitiveness;
3. Improve access to feedstock and recognition of sustainability;
4. Support infrastructure scale up and improve access to skills.

We call on these specific key asks to be considered in the forthcoming European Commission Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing initiative alongside 5 common cross-sectoral principles.