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TBI BIO 2009 Wrap-Up

While the state of Georgia doesn’t rank among the biggest biotech hotbeds in the U.S., BIO 2009 was a coming-out party of sorts for the Peach State. More than 14,000 attendees descended upon the Georgia World Congress Center for the conference, despite the economic recession, many left Atlanta with the idea that Georgia could one day be a key player in the biotech space.

Overall, the draw to BIO was much lower than it has been in the past, but both Ontario and TBI were well represented and provided a lot of energy to the event. Tim Horton’s was there with its coffee, doing its thing again and the booth attracted quite the crowd to the Canadian pavilion.

Among the highlights, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty was recognized by the Biotechnology Industry Organization for his commitment to help develop and grow Ontario’s biotechnology industry, winning the International Leadership Award.

“Premier McGuinty was chosen for this award based on his exemplary record of promoting the biotechnology industry and innovation in the life sciences in Ontario,” said James C. Greenwood, president and CEO of BIO. He added that he expects that the industry will continue to thrive in Ontario under the Premier’s watch.

Ontario’s ranks included a 300-member delegation with individuals from private sector companies, universities, municipalities and medical research institutions in attendance. Big pharma was there in full force as well. This list included several TBI members, like Sean Kelly from Pfizer, Mark Jones President & CEO of AstraZeneca Canada, Dawn Graham President of Merck Frosst Canada Ltd., Paul Lucas President and CEO. GlaxoSmithKline Inc., and TBI board member Allan O’Dette also from GSK. TBI board members Dale Patterson and Matt Buist, and other TBI members Grant Tipler, Dale Patterson, Rocky Ganske, David Allen and Peter Pekos also attended.

The Canadian Kick–Off Reception was held Sunday at Dailey’s Restaurant and on Monday, Gowling’s hosted their annual BIO luncheon at the The Fox Theatre. The luncheon was a great place for networking and attendees included Canada’s Minister for Health Tony Clement, BIOTECanada President Peter Brenders and RX&D President Russell Williams. At the luncheon, Williams gave a stirring speech on the current state of the Canadian biopharmaceutical industry and addressed Canada’s current ranking as “in the middle of the pack” in terms of science and innovation, making several suggestions on how to improve our ranking.

The Ontario Business Breakfast at the Omni Hotel got the ball rolling Tuesday morning, as Minister of Research and Innovation John Wilkinson announced two new investments under the Biopharmaceutical Innovation Fund. The two new BIP investments will see a Pfizer collaborate with the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) and GSK Canada sign a manufacturing deal in Mississauga, ON. This announcement was followed by the official opening of the Canadian Pavilion, in which members from many Canadian jurisdictions took part.

Tuesday afternoon, at BIOTECanada's Gold Leaf Awards Presentation, former TBI board member David Young took top honours winning the BIOTECanada Company of the Year Award for the $191 million dollar deal that saw pharma giant Roche purchase Arius Research in 2008.

This year’s convention focused on research and development, partnership opportunities and finding new business models to survive the economic crisis. Tips for staying lean and mean were offered in many sessions.

In his keynote speech, Sir Elton John demanded that the biotech industry confront the reality of the worldwide HIV/AIDS epidemic. To support his foundation efforts, BIO has pledged $150,000 to the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

Looking ahead to BIO 2010, the convention returns to the windy city Chicago, IL. It will be held May 3-6, 2010. Expect to see many TBI members there; we hope to see you there too!