Biotechnology Research Roadmap - Science and Innovation

The perception that this is a “sunset industry” has also
been challenged in recent times by an up-swing in
commodity prices, the increasing use of science and
technology to produce food and fibre more efficiently,
and a growing exploration of ways in which we can
extract increasingly value-added products from our
commodities. Given the size of our primary production
sector, even small productivity gains translate into
significant economic returns. For example, 3% per
annum annual income growth in a $5 billion sector
will add about $800 million over five years. 27
This means that one of the major impacts on the
economy of biotechnology is likely to come from its
effect on our primary industries. This has been termed
the “enabling” effect of biotechnology; that is the
adoption of new technologies by an existing sector.
In order to gain some more quantitative information
on the enabling effects of biotechnology, MoRST
recently commissioned the Agribusiness and
Economics Research Unit (AERU) at Lincoln
University to develop a method for measuring the
impact of biotechnology within the primary sector in
New Zealand. 28
The AERU research estimated gains to New Zealand’s
primary sector of $266 million per annum from
four commercialised biotechnologies. 29 The wider
financial impacts were also considered. The results also
showed that the annual economic contribution of these
four biotechnologies to the economy as a whole was,
conservatively, around $300-400 million per annum.
These gains have required long term investment in
research of around 10-15 years.
New Zealand’s primary industries face increasing
challenges, not least the sustainable use of our natural
resources, the risks posed by biosecurity incursions,
climate change and changing international market
conditions. For example, China and South America
are becoming increasingly competitive in terms of
producing agricultural and horticultural commodities,
and countries like Brazil and Argentina are becoming
increasingly competitive in meat and dairy. 30 However,
as farming systems in these countries become more
sophisticated they also present growing markets for agbiotechnology
products developed in New Zealand.
New Zealand’s ability to truly “add-value” to the
products produced by its primary industries will be
a key determining factor in our future economic
competitiveness. Biotechnology research will have
a pivotal role to play in New Zealand achieving
this. Over the longer term New Zealand also needs
to “futureproof” its economy by diversifying its
economic base. This will only be achieved by creating
sustainable economic advantages in new areas of
activity or by transforming existing industries.
Internationally, most of the value in biotechnology
has come from the health area. In New Zealand a
number of biomedical and drug discovery research
projects are maturing towards commercialisation
and have the potential to add substantial value to
the country’s economy in the future. Biotechnology
research will have a considerable part to play in
increasing New Zealand’s ability to get benefits from
the global health market.
3.2 The New Zealand biotechnology industry:
growing in scale
A 1983 Department of Scientific and Industrial
Research discussion paper on the then nascent field
of biotechnology assessed what would be significant to
New Zealand industry in the future. It noted that New
Zealand had ‘comparative advantages in its capacity to
base industries on renewable biological resources’ and
further that ‘such industries have formed the major
portion of our industrial development’. 31
Since 1983, New Zealand has become involved in
the global biotechnology sector, both in the areas of
opportunity identified from traditional strengths and also
the biomedical sector that has done so much to fuel the
27
MoRST (2006), Becoming more globally competitive
28
Lincoln University Agribusiness and Economics Research Unit (2006), Estimating the Economic Contribution of Biotechnology to New Zealand’s Primary Sector
29
The four commercialised biotechnologies selected were clonal propagation; biocontrol agents; enzyme manipulations and marker-assisted selection.
30
MAF (2006), Statement of Intent
31
DSIR (1983), Biotechnology in New Zealand, DSIR Discussion Paper No. 8.
Roadmaps for Science : biotechnology research
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