The Leader - March/April 2009 - (Page 51) SPECIAL FEATURE Limitless Possibilities: Biotech Industry Plays a Pivotal Role in Global Issues, Offers Intriguing Opportunities for Economic Development BY BAILEY WEBB F ew industries require collaboration like the biotech industry, whether it’s scientific collaboration in the laboratory or partnerships between private investors and entrepreneurs working with municipalities and state and federal government. Ultimately, that collaboration reaps rewards for each party involved, with a multiplier effect that can create great personal wealth for those entrepreneurs and investors and a wealth of economic development opportunities for communities, from the creation of biotech clusters and the services and development that pop up around them. Biotech’s not all fun and games, though. Aspects of the industry deal with potentially thorny subjects like stem cell research, genomics and bio-engineered crops. Such a dynamic industry poses risks, too, in that tomorrow’s discoveries may render today’s obsolete. Like most any other industry, it also can be rough and tumble, a Darwinian universe with global titans like Monsanto and Roche constantly fishing for the next acquisition and investment gurus like Carl Icahn and George Soros betting on big biotech gains. Earlier this year, Roche, perhaps a bit impatient with the progress of its bid to buy Genetech, moved to make a hostile takeover and simultaneously lowered its asking price. Icahn increased his holdings in San Diego2 0 0 9 THE LE ADE R based Amylin to 9.4 percent of the company’s shares earlier this year, and his stake in Boston-based Biogen stood at 6 percent at the end of 2008. At both companies – and in typical Icahn-fashion – he’s pressed for a slate of Icahn-approved directors. As with potential economic development opportunities for states and communities, biotech’s lure is obvious for investors. As equities markets plummeted 38.9 percent last year, the biotech sector’s gains totaled 2.3 percent, according to Barron’s. The sector’s endless possibilities also include biofuels, where genetically modified soybeans and corn serve as major inputs. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that ethanol usage could reduce oil/gas consumption by as much as 30 percent by 2030, and biotech’s role in boosting farm productivity will have to play a major role in ensuring that production targets are met. It’s little wonder that communities across the U.S. are making enormous investments in attracting and furthering biotech clusters, in most cases working with colleges and universities and the federal government. San Antonio’s Brooks City-Base is one of the best examples of the convergence of private and local and federal efforts. While San Antonio’s had a net gain from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Base 51 MARCH / APRIL
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