About flanders.bio
Our vision
flanders.bio aims to be a valued contact point for its members, as well as a driving force and enabler for the ambition to rank among the top five life sciences clusters in Europe and the top 10 globally.
Our mission
Our mission is to create value for our members through a targeted focus in our activities and to serve as a reputable source of information for key stakeholders and media, as well as a representative voice to local governments.
flanders.bio represents the Flemish innovative life sciences sector. When necessary and relevant, we also represent the Belgian innovative life sciences sector, working closely with partners like BioWin and Bio.be.
Our strategy
To realise our vision and achieve success, we concentrate our efforts on five strategic goals:
1. Discover
We aim to enhance the discovery-innovation continuum by facilitating the transition from academic research to innovative products and promoting outstanding science throughout the value chain in health, agro & foodtech, and industrial sectors.
2. Connect
Our goal is to enable cross-technology, cross-sector collaborations and encourage the development of integrated life sciences solutions. This involves tapping into expertise in biotech, medtech, digital sciences, and other relevant fields to gather longitudinal data and create targeted, personalised solutions in health, agriculture, and industrial sectors.
3. Test
We strive to maintain an appealing setting for conducting early pilot trials or testing products as part of the process to secure marketing authorisation.
4. Fund
Our strategy includes ensuring a targeted approach in the funding strategies of local governments, fostering connections between biotech entrepreneurs and investors, and offering entrepreneurs information on dilutive and non-dilutive funding options.
5. Educate
We plan to attract talent to our life sciences companies, identify talent shortages in the Belgian and Flemish life sciences markets, and actively engage with universities and university colleges to develop structural solutions for bridging these gaps.
All these efforts are directed towards building a fertile environment that encourages new ventures to emerge, and supports the growth and evolution of young companies into sustainable, medium-sized enterprises (with more than 250 employees).
History
Groundbreaking scientific advancements in the 1970s and 1980s paved the way for the establishment of some of the world's first biotechnology companies, both in the health and agro-biotech sectors. Among these achievements was the development of one of the initial life-saving biologics in the cardiovascular field. Subsequently, new therapeutics for infectious diseases emerged, along with Europe's first approved Advanced Therapy Medicinal Product (ATMP).
Over the years, this sector has experienced sustained growth, owing to several contributing factors. One key factor is the robust research and development foundation present in universities and research institutes like the VIB, alongside the innovative efforts of the biotech industry. Additionally, a growing community of serial entrepreneurs and investors, along with supportive governmental policies, have played crucial roles in nurturing the Belgian biotech sector.
Furthermore, Belgium boasts a significant pharmaceutical and AgBio research and development presence, with companies such as Janssen Pharmaceutica, GSK, UCB, Sanofi, and BASF, as well as leading manufacturing and production facilities belonging to top-tier pharmaceutical and medtech firms like Pfizer, Novartis, and Baxter. Together, these elements create a professional landscape dedicated to delivering life sciences solutions to patients and consumers.
Timeline
Life sciences in Flanders
flanders.bio was established in 2004 by a number of life sciences entrepreneurs, VC’s and the research institute VIB. As an independent not for profit industry association, we have actively reached out to the life sciences community, and have profited from the strong growth of the sector in past several years.
Today we represent the life science network economy in its broadest sense, including our core R&D focused life sciences companies, universities and research institutes and professional service providers, not only in Flanders but also from the Brussels region, Wallonia and other countries like the Netherlands, France, Italy, and the UK.
About the ecosystem
Innovation is at the core of the life sciences sector and Belgium has a track record of developing ingenious ways to improve the quality
of life of millions of people worldwide. The Belgian life sciences sector is responsible for almost 50% of all R&D expenses by the
industry in its totality in Belgium and 10% of the R&D of the European biopharmaceutical industry.
Not only extensive life sciences facilities support this high-level technology industry but also financial benefits for R&D companies,
international collaborations that guarantee regular cash flow, world known educational systems, a promising product pipeline, and
Belgium’s unique central location in Europe.
Belgium concentrates on a small territory (30,528 km2) more than 300 life sciences companies with biotech activities. In total, the life
sciences sector employs more than 30,000 people (low bound estimation that does not take into account indirect employment
generated by the sector). The majority of the companies is related to healthcare, but Belgium also has a strong representation of
agricultural and industrial biotech companies.
The growing life sciences sector gathers 8 main Belgian universities, 19 research parks and 23 incubators, research institutes, academic
hospitals, and clinical research organisations. Biotech companies have access to more than 500,000 square feet of highly flexible
infrastructure.
Additional assets of Belgium includes: a supportive regulatory and political environment, a highly qualified and productive workforce, a
competitive tax environment especially for research companies, a prominent location and an excellent logistical and business
infrastructure.
Biotech in Flanders
Jo Bury, Johan Cardoen and Dirk Reyn have been closely involved in the development of the Flemish biotech industry as the driving forces behind the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology (VIB) and flanders.bio. When they realised that some of the iconic pioneers of the Flemish biotech story were quietly retreating and becoming less visible, they decided to write down the story of Flemish biotech in a book.
