Business Potential for Agricultural Biotechnology - Asian Productivity ...
Business Potential for Agricultural Biotechnology - Asian Productivity ...
Business Potential for Agricultural Biotechnology - Asian Productivity ...
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MANAGEMENT POLITICAL<br />
TOOL<br />
NATURAL<br />
RESOURCES<br />
Microbes,<br />
plants, animals<br />
TOOL<br />
TOOL<br />
BIOTECHNOLOGY<br />
Life –science-based<br />
knowledge<br />
<strong>Agricultural</strong> <strong>Biotechnology</strong> Development in Indonesia<br />
INDUSTRIAL<br />
DEVELOP-<br />
MENT<br />
Bio-industries<br />
Figure 1. Diagrammatic Illustration of the Links between Markets,<br />
<strong>Biotechnology</strong>, and Natural Resources<br />
Based on the utilization of biotechnology, bio-industry is well placed to become a strategic<br />
industry. Some bio-industry products <strong>for</strong> therapeutic use, such as antibiotics, vaccines, diagnostics,<br />
etc., and agricultural applications related to crops and livestock have found good markets in<br />
Indonesia. Bio-industry products such as biopesticides and biofertilizes are becoming preferable<br />
to chemically-derived products due to environmental and ecological concerns.<br />
The strategic approach of biotechnology development <strong>for</strong> industrialization in Indonesia will<br />
be addressed from two levels: macro and micro approaches. On the macro level, the first element<br />
is positioning biotechnology in terms of technology capacity and the industrial stage of development.<br />
Worldwide competition among research institutes and business enterprises in the field of<br />
biotechnology is severe. To be significantly competitive, the specific area of biotechnology to be<br />
focused on should be determined with care. The second element is national capacity building, including<br />
the development of human resources, small- and medium-sized enterprises <strong>for</strong> the domestic<br />
market, and large-sized ones with the possibility of entering the global market under joint<br />
ventures, <strong>for</strong>eign direct investment, or licensing.<br />
The strategy <strong>for</strong> the development of biotechnology on the micro level focuses on upgrading<br />
or improving technology processes (fermentation and downstream processing, cell and tissue<br />
culture, and biological development), upgrading the supporting knowledge (molecular biology,<br />
biochemistry up to the molecular level, physiology, biomaterial sciences, bioengineering, etc.),<br />
benefiting from and making maximum use of the rapid advancement of genomic research and<br />
bioin<strong>for</strong>matics <strong>for</strong> more advanced research and development of better products, and maximizing<br />
synergy through networking among related research institutes by sharing experiences and establishing<br />
complementary programs. <strong>Potential</strong> benefits of agricultural biotechnology include higher<br />
crop yields, reduction in fertilizer and pesticide use, tolerance of adverse climatic conditions,<br />
greater use of marginal lands, fewer adverse environmental impacts, identification and elimination<br />
of diseases in food animals, and better food quality and nutrition, including restoration of<br />
micronutrient deficiencies. Some potential applications are:<br />
Food and Agriculture<br />
Genetic transfer of traits in transgenic plants by recombinant DNA technology: herbicide<br />
tolerance, insect resistance, viral disease tolerance, fungal disease tolerance, product quality improvement,<br />
and male sterility traits. Production of metabolites/chemicals, improvement of nutritional<br />
traits, stress-resistance properties, etc.<br />
– 113 –<br />
PRODUCT<br />
MARKET<br />
Domestic<br />
and global
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