Biotechnology overview
Australia – A world class partner in biotechnology
Australia has a diverse biotechnology sector covering human therapeutics, agriculture, bioinformatics and convergent technologies such as nano-biotechnology applications. Within human therapeutics Australia has world-class excellence in immunology, stem cells, reproductive medicine, infectious diseases, and oncology, as well as cross-sectoral areas, such as proteomics.
Australia has over 420 core biotechnology companies with total employment in the sector in the sector exceeding 6100 and revenues of over A$3 billion.
Australia is a leader in the application of biotechnology science to agriculture, boasting crop yields, resistance to herbicides and tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses such as drought and salinity.
Australian public and private institutions invest $500 million in the development of R&D-centred on the burgeoning global agri-biotech sector, which is set to expand significantly in the next 10 years with new higher yielding crop varieties and molecular breeding techniques that advance the commercialisation process, notwithstanding novel uses for agribio crops in the energy, starch, biomass, functional food and pharmaceutical sector.
Australia is also home to almost 10 per cent of global plant biodiversity, with around 85 per cent of plants and microbes in Australia found nowhere else in the world. Since 40 to 50 per cent of modern medicines have their origins in natural products, Australia provides an exciting opportunity for potential investors and partners.
Australia produces more than three per cent of global medical research. Its thriving biotech industry is driven by its university and hospital sectors which produce much of Australia’s biomedical R&D, and have led to the creation of many successful biotechnology spin-out companies including G2 Therapies.
In addition world-class national research organisations operate in Australia such as the Commonwealth and Scientific Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), and major national research facilities including the world’s first dedicated Proteome Centre – the Australian Proteome Analysis Facility (APAF), and the National Stem Cell Centre.
A significant number of medical research institutions are based in Australia, including the Monash Institutes of Health, Garvan Research Institute of Medical Research, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, John Curtin School of Medical Research, Institute for Molecular Bioscience, the Queensland Institute for Medical Research and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
Additionally, Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) are collaborative research ventures that bring together researchers from universities, the public sector and business – a programme that is unique to Australia. These CRC’s are also seeking international collaborators especially in the area of agriculture and biomedical research.
Australia’s research excellence is underpinned by infrastructural investment such as the Synchrotron, the Bio21 precinct, and the formation of the Government backed Australian Stem Cell Centre with a focus on the commercialisation of its research.
The recent Federal Budget announcements covering several reforms in the venture capital sector to stimulate greater investment in early stage innovation and commercialisation of intellectual property serve to boost the current government’s $6.2 billion science and innovation strategy – Backing Australia’s Ability (BAA). BAA in its second phase sets aside funds for the Australian biotech community to:
- Support business to business cooperation on innovation projects
- Collaborate with international science partners
- Increase the quality and quantity of pharmaceutical R&D activity
Australia’s willingness to partner is reflected in the country’s large number of cross-border alliances in biotechnology – 72 per cent of alliances announced by biotech and other life sciences firms during 2004 were with organisations outside Australia .
The world’s leading biotech and pharma firms have direct presence in Australia, including GlaxoSmithKline (UK), Merck Sharp & Dohme (USA), AstraZeneca (Sweden/UK), Bristol-Myers Squibb (USA), Pfizer (USA), and TAP Pharmaceuticals (a joint venture between Abbott Laboratories and Takeda Chemical Industries), Hoffman La Roche (Switzerland) and Amgen (USA).
- Australia has a greater availability of scientists and engineers than the UK, Singapore and Germany (World Economic Forum 2003).
- Australia compared against the US, UK, Germany, Japan, Singapore and India ranked first on Clinical Trials, scoring well for low average costs of clinical trials and a high percentage of clinical trials completed within the allocated time. (EIU Pharmaceutical Benchmarking Study 2005).
- In terms of biomedical R&D, Australia is ranked as more cost effective than the UK, USA and Germany, particularly with labour, salaries, utilities and income tax (World Economic Forum 2003).
Biotechnology Australia – www.biotechnology.gov.au
The Australian Biotech Association – www.ausbiotech.org
Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation – www.csiro.au
Cooperative Research Centres – www.crc.gov.au
Therapeutic Goods Administration – www.tga.gov.au (Soon to change to Australia New Zealand Therapeutic Products Authority –ANZTPA, as a joint agency).
Department of Industry Tourism & Resources – www.industry.gov.au
Email: health@austrade.gov.au