Swedish Biotech Update

The success of Swedish biotech companies to
compete on the world stage will depend much on their ability to co-operate on a national level. The Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology (SIK) is an industrial research institute, which aims to address this by strength-ening the competitiveness of the food and biotechno-logical industry.

Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology (SIK)
Founded: 1946
Publicly listed: No
Number of employees: 140
Key business area(s): A research
institute with the purpose to strengthen the competitiveness of food and biotech industry
Telephone: +46 31 335 56 00
Website
Contact

Bringing Sweden
together through SIK

It does this through conducting need-oriented research and confidential process and product development projects. It also offers tailored courses for individual companies and participates in undergraduate and PhD education at universities and colleges in Gothenburg, Lund and Uppsala.
   Per Vretblad is manager of SIK´s biotechnology initiatives. He explains what SIK has to offer the biotechnology world. "Leading Nordic food and biotechnology enterprises and major international food companies are already making use of SIK's unique resources," says Vretblad.
   "By becoming members of the SIK Members' Association, companies get access to the leading Nordic network within food and biotechnology re-search. The Association, which has about 130 members, holds 70% of SIK's shares. SIK has also recently started a network for biotechnology companies, called Bioteknik-Forum, which already has around 50 members."
   Vretblad is keen to increase member-ship of SIK and the BioteknikForum because the more members the better the service he can offer biotechno-logy companies.
   "Increased membership enables us to pursue a strategic research and development programme," says Vretblad.
   To illustrate one of the ways in which SIK works, Vretblad refers to one of the institute´s recent educational initiatives within the food industry, which uses the Internet to get its message across.

New interactive correspondence course in Food Hygiene
SIK, in collaboration with the Vocational Council of the Swedish Food Industry, has developed a new interactive correspondence course in Food Hygiene specifically for staff working on the production line.
   "The aim of this course is to increase understanding about the importance of good hygiene in production, as well as increasing expertise and quality awareness among staff. The course is adapted entirely for the Internet and all teaching takes place via the screen using a self-instructing pedagogic platform. The course is one of the most modern of its kind as all members communicate with each other and the course leader via e-mail."

The institute’s biggest focus is on its efforts in research and development.
"SIK´s main focus is to act as a source of knowledge and experience for companies in the areas of food and biotechnology. We do this by offering services in the form of training, technology, knowledge transfer and consultancy assistance in areas such as product/ process development and problem solving, the provision of advice and service in research and development issues. The foundation for this is a high competence among SIK employees and a continuous renewal and expansion of knowledge."
   Amongst the institute´s research areas has been microbiological product safety, structure-related properties, environmental effects of the food system and of course, applications of biotechnology.

Essential to Sweden’s progress
But Vretblad wants to expand SIK´s involvement in both the domestic and European biotechnology scene and cites the organisation´s membership of EuropaBio as essential to Sweden´s progress in biotechnology.
   "We are the Swedish representatives of EuropaBio - a European wide network of organisations dedicated to furthering the biotechnology industry. We address Europe wide issues for Swedish biotech companies such as debating questions about forthcoming EU legislation, helping companies apply for EU funding and trying to bring Swedish companies together because there is not such a strong infrastructure here for the biotechnology industry."

A very healthy research base
But Vretblad is still optimistic that Sweden is in a prime position for the biotechnology revolution and says the country can offer a unique level of experience. "There is a very healthy research base in Sweden. Although some of the big pharmaceutical giants like Pharmacia and AstraZeneca have based themselves outside this country, a lot of the senior and middle management have started their own companies. The experience they bring bodes well for Sweden I think."
Vretblad concludes stating that one major benefit of SIK is that it can provide companies with contacts in all the right places, including the political arena soon.
"We have the contacts to link companies up with the right people. We don´t pretend that we can help with all aspects of the technology but we can help them reach a wider audience and network of contacts. In the future, we intend to be involved on a more political level through lobbying which is not a very developed practice in Sweden as yet."

Nicholas Mead