Biotechnology paves the way for Bioeconomy
April 11, 2012

EU launched its strategy and action plan for a sustainable bioeconomy in mid-March 2012. This means investments in sustainable production and exploitation of renewable raw materials as alternative energy and carbon sources. What does it mean to the industry?

The way I interpret it, some of the main benefits for the industry are:

1. Increased support for demonstration and scale-up activities of sustainable and biobased industrial processes, with an aim to increase the markets and competitiveness in bioeconomy;
2. Policymakers and stakeholders are pushed to work more closely together, to create standards, criteria and frames for bioeconomy;
3. More funding for research, innovation and skills, to develop tools and technologies for bioeconomy.

The benefitting industries will no doubt be food, agriculture, paper & pulp, forestry, wood, fisheries and aquaculture sectors, but also chemical industries.

The bioeconomy strategy will be implemented through funding in the EU ‘Horizon 2020’ program, with a budget of € 4,7 billion proposed for innovation and research in “Food security, sustainable agriculture, marine and maritime research, and the bioeconomy” and for biotechnology that has been chosen as the key enabling technology, followed by nanotechnologies, ICT and engineering.

Can Bioeconomy bring a new boost for biotechnology and claim the expectations long held alone by the pharma industry?

Biotechnological processes are used e.g. in the manufacturing of antibiotics, vitamins and other fine chemicals already today, so the technologies exist. The challenge is to get these techniques into broader use as enablers of sustainable industrial processes.

This is a golden opportunity for the whole biotechnology sector to show what it has to offer. From a political level, the investments will not get any higher.

As mentioned, the Bioeconomy strategy will be implemented through funding in Horizon 2020. But already in the next FP7 KBBE call you can build a consortium and apply for funding for research aiming at more sustainable and competitive bio-based industries. This is a great opportunity for SMEs, with half of the calls having 15-50% of financing reserved for SMEs.

With cross-disciplinary teamwork and utilizing the existing skills in biotechnology, the Bioeconomy goals are reachable. I have heard too many traditional industry representatives say “there is a lot of potential in biotechnology, but we are not sure are we ready for it and are the investments worth it”. Share the risk and put your efforts together. If we don’t try, we will never know what it could have become. Let’s take the chance, it will be worth it!


Solveig Sjöblom



The best-selling products in the Japanese pharma market in 2011
March 13, 2012

The Pharmaceutical market in Japan grew 6.9 % in 2011 to 115 billion USD.

Aricept (Eisai) for alzheimer’s disease was the best-selling Rx product with 14.9 % growth to 1.754 billion USD.

Blopress (Takeda) for hypertension treatment was the second best-selling with 1.57 billion USD.

The third was non-Japanese Dinovan (Novartis) for hypertension treatment with 1.45 billion USD.

Nearly 40 % of the pharmaceutical products, 45 billion USD worth, were consumed in large hospitals. Clinics and small hospitals (under 100 beds) consumed for 27 billion USD. Also pharmacies distributed pharmaceutical products for 42 billion USD.

There were no remarkable price cuts of drug price by the government in 2011 and this is one of the reasons for the growth of the pharmaceutical market in Japan in 2011.

Source (in Japanese) http://www.cabrain.net/news/article/newsId/36647.html

Anna Kalmi




Japan allergy market – the season is on
March 1, 2012

It is said that about every fourth Japanese person suffers from pollen allergy. There are over 60 types of pollens in Japan causing allergic conditions and many people get allergies from several pollens, but about 80 % of the pollen allergy is due to Japanese cedar. The massive plantation of cedar trees since 1960’s has dramatically increased this allergy type in Japan. (Japan Weather Association pollen map)

The pollen allergy related market is very large and the peak time is February to March. The market of treatment and relief products of pollen allergy is said to be over 50 billion JPY (close to 500 million euro). It is said that pollen allergy related product market size exceeds 150 billion JPY. The economic impacts are considerable since the major part of pollen allergy patients are 20-60 years and this allergy is affecting on their daily productivity.

The pollen allergy is one of the regular and popular topics in Japanese media in every February and March. The magazines have special articles with advices to survive over this season. Drug stores and department stores give special display spaces to provide innovative products to provide supportive items for the pollen allergic people.

The product development effort for the pollen allergy market is very active and many new treatement and relief products are launched in every season. Additionally to the pharmaceutical products (both Rx and OTC), there are many type of supportive products; masks, eye protection products, cosmetics, food, supplements, clothes, air quality related home electronic products, car filters etc.

Masks are one of the top products to assist through the pollen season. Drug stores provide various types of masks from cheap, simple disposable masks to well-fitting 3D-shaped masks with specially coated material to block pollens. The providers of high-quality masks have studied the shape of faces to develop well-fitting masks covering both nose and mouth and produced in several sizes. Also liquid form mask is available to be administrated topically to form a film over nose area to block pollens.

The mask season will take so many weeks so there are masks designed for particular user groups. Ladies may enjoy masks with fragrant (e.g. rose or jasmine) with pretty colors or select the mask brand with special surface material to protect their make-up on face. Also “smooth nasal condition candies” are launched to be used with masks to give fresh feeling with masks. (Nikkei Woman Online, article on Feb 18, Pollen Allergy Protection Items)

A well-known department store specialized for young working women customers announced that their “pollen allergy collection” includes over 50 items; fashionably designed outfits with specially coated material to block pollens. Advanced textile technologies are creatively applied to create new anti-pollen costumes for this season. Stylish eye protectors are specially designed for Japanese face and head shapes to ensure optimal fitting and to be used with a mask.

Also more and more children are suffering from pollen allergy, and many products can be produced for children; pediatric medications, clothes and other protection items in children’s size and design.

Could your company provide new solutions to this pollen allergy market and provide improvement for quality of life to pollen allergy patients?

Anna Kalmi



Happy New Financial Year!
February 2, 2012

With envy did European life science ventures read the recent statistics from the USA: biotechnology and medical device companies raised a total of $7.54 billion in VC financing last year, twenty percent more than the year before. A total of 785 companies in these sectors split the money, coming to an average of $9.6 million per company. The bad news? The number of companies receiving their first funding declined, and in medical devices it was the lowest number in 16 years. Money is kept in existing portfolio, later stage companies.

European statistics will probably take another five months to be ready (really), but I can assure that the twenty percent raise in VC financing for life sciences is just a daydream for us. I wish I was wrong. One trend we have in common with our overseas colleagues: investors are not putting money into first rounds and early-stage programs. Companies raising money have existing investors, multiple collaborations, are close to break-even, and have management with a track record of making money to backers. One of these companies is Prosonix, recently featured in the Sunday Times. Prosonix raised £11.4 million for applying its particle engineering technology to reformulate respiratory drugs, closing one of the top three UK investment rounds in 2011. (I am proud to mention that Innomedica’s Senior Advisor Dr. Jim Phillips is the Chairman of Prosonix.)

So if you are a new European company looking to raise funds in 2012: keep yourself slim & virtual in the early stages, focus on quality data, and invest in people that have a track record. And if you find a good quality investor ready to invest in the first round, don’t think too long.

By the way, welcome to Innomedica's new blog!
Tanja Dowe