Business Potential for Agricultural Biotechnology - Asian Productivity ...

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Summary of Findings
The pharmaceutical company Hanmi has produced the transgenic goat, “Meddy” (in collaboration
with KAIST, KRIBB, and ChungNam National University), which produced human
granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (hG-CSF), one of the hematopoietic factors that control
the differentiation of pluripotent stem cells into many kinds of blood cells during hematopoiesis.
It also plays a key role in the stimulation of proliferation and differentiation for other types of
blood cells, in addition to granulocytes and macrophages. This is a promising drug for many
kinds of disorders related to reduction of neutrophil and other blood cell levels. If the materials
derived from the goat’s milk are effective, the price of G-CSF will be decreased. Humans produce
on the average only small amounts of G-CSF, which has made the protein extremely expensive
for white-cell-deficient cancer patients. The cost of producing G-CSF from genetically
altered animals is one-tenth of the cost of obtaining it from mammalian cells, the method commonly
used in advanced countries.
Transgenic animal research has received firm support from the Korean government since
the late 1990s and will be given a major stimulus in 2005 with the launching of the national
grants program. Although the technology has yet to produce a final product, there have been several
successfully created transgenic farm animals. It is expected that the first successful product
that can undergo clinical trials will be produced within the next few years.
Business Potential for Agricultural Biotechnology Products in Malaysia
The biotechnology industry is relatively new in Malaysia, especially in the agricultural
sector. Under a new strategy, the development of biotechnology will be spread out using the
concept of a bionexus network, in which the development of biotechnology will be divided into
three main fields: pharmaceutical and nutraceutical, agrobiotechnology, and genomic and molecular
biology. The value proposition of the bionexus network is that it will leverage on the facilities,
infrastructure, and capabilities of existing universities and research institutes. For example,
a Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical Institute will be established at the present biovalley site at
Dengkil. The Institute of Agrobiotechnology is situated at MARDI, Serdang, and the Genomic
and Molecular Biology Institute is situated at existing facilities in the National University
Malaysia in Bangi. Bionexus will link these institutes with industries throughout the country.
The government recognizes that biotechnology processes such as genetic engineering have the
potential to increase production and productivity in the agricultural sector. Malaysia is among
the few ASEAN countries that have approved the use of GM food crops as human food and
animal feed. It has successfully conducted field trials of GMOs and developed guidelines for
their release. GM activities and products are governed by guidelines formulated by the Genetic
Modification Advisory Committee (GMAC), which has published the National Guidelines for
Release of Genetically Modified Organisms into the Environment. The National Guidelines have
been revised and drafted into a new piece of legislation, the Malaysian Biosafety Bill, which will
be considered in Parliament in December 2005. Under these guidelines, commercialization of
biotech crops requires GMAC approval for all field evaluations. GMO release into the environment
is currently restricted to research fields. Malaysia has also set up a National Biosafety Central
Body to be responsible for monitoring biotechnology activities.
The biotechnology industry in Malaysia consists of companies specializing in biotechnology,
biopharmaceuticals, bioinformatics, and agricultural biotechnology that focus on a range of
products such as tissue culture, diagnostics, vaccine production, and blood bank collection.
Companies involved in agricultural biotech are primarily plantation (palm oil), herbal-based, and
aquaculture companies. The biotech industry is dominated by small- to medium-sized companies.
Only a few larger companies are involved in biotechnology; most of them focus on plant tissue
culture. Currently there are about 100 companies registered with the Malaysian Biotechnology
Directorate under the Ministry of Science and Innovation. Of these, 20 are involved in the agricultural
sector. However, there are about 50 companies that utilize biotechnological processes,
primarily in food production, herbal products, and pharmaceuticals. There is still great potential