The Bioeconomy

Quick facts
42% of core bioscience companies are located in Auckland
The bioscience sector in Auckland has attracted more than $300 million of overseas investment in the past five years
Auckland accounts for 34% of the nation's bioscience expenditure and 34% of its income
In Auckland, bioscience employs approximately 3,000 people in research, commercialisation, production or in a support/service capacity

Quick facts 42% of core bioscience companies are located in Auckland The bioscience sector in Auckland has attracted more than $300 million of overseas investment in the past five years Auckland accounts for 34% of the nation's bioscience expenditure and 34% of its income In Auckland, bioscience employs approximately 3,000 people in research, commercialisation, production or in a support/service capacity

What is Bioscience

"Bioscience is the application of science and technology to living organisms as well as parts, products and models thereof, to alter living or non-living materials for the production of knowledge, goods and services".

The bioscience sector in Auckland is growing rapidly led by breakthrough science, talented people and attracting foreign direct investment. Industry success is related to Auckland’s world-ranking tertiary education services and research strength .

Organisations like UniServices Ltd - the University of Auckland’s commercialisation vehicle are at the forefront of generating value from the bioeconomy in Auckland.

The sector also has a well-established and vibrant cluster - NZBIO which involves bioscience companies and the support services needed throughout product development and commercialisation.

The Auckland industry comprises the following subsectors:

Human health
Agricultural bioscience
Animal health
Industrial, environment and medical devices.

Growth drivers for Auckland

The key drivers of growth include:

The global push towards environmental sustainability is enabled by a range of clean technologies which New Zealand biotech companies have been developing for decades
Need to replace commodity markets with added-value, knowledge based industries
Increase in foreign investment as the bioeconomy industry matures
Increase in domestic investment prospects
Increase in experienced commercialisation staff
Increase in global connectedness

Outlook

Almost all bioscience entities sell high value product. The export potential for the bioscience sector is very high with many NZ bioscience companies exclusively focussed on export markets. In addition to export of goods and services, the NZ bioeconomy exports intellectual property in the form of licensing deals.

BioScience 2020 Strategy

In recognition of the growing importance of BioSciences to Auckland's economy, the Auckland Bio-economy Development Group, facilitated by AucklandPlus was formed in 2009.

The group was charged to develop and implement a collaborative regional growth strategy to further develop a thriving, growing bioscience industry with world-leading capability in Health Science, Medtech, Cleantech, Functional Foods and Agbio.

The BioScience 2020 strategy will provide a focus for Auckland, build our international reputation, guide investment into strategically important areas and contribute to growth and economic development.

Auckland Bioeconomy Strategy 2020.pdf