BIO Deutschland Attends EuropaBio National Associations Council Meeting

BIO Deutschland regularly attends EuropaBio National Associations Council (NAC) meetings in Brussels in order to exchange views and discuss developments with other national biotechnology associations. The first NAC meeting of 2015 took place at the beginning of March. The topics on the agenda were antibiotic resistance, biosimilars, synthetic biology and the EU Biotech Week.

On the topic of antibiotic resistance, the national associations discussed the preparations for the G7 summit, which will take place in Bavaria in June. Antibiotics and a joint course of action to tackle antibiotic resistance will be discussed at this summit.

At the end of February, the European associations (EuropaBio and EFPIA) met the European Commission to discuss the topic of biosimilars in greater detail. The European Commission is currently compiling market data in order to evaluate biosimilars’ market penetration and potential in Europe. A multi-stakeholder meeting on this topic will be held in Riga in mid-April. The European Commission’s is due to be published at the beginning of August.

On the topic of synthetic biology, the national associations reported on the discussions currently taking place, particularly as regards the implementation of the international Convention on Biological Diversity. Talks are also being held between Europe and the US with the aim of standardising interpretation. BIO Deutschland reported on the endeavours to further standardisation in synthetic biology as part of international standardisation efforts.

The next European Biotech Week will take place during the second week of October. The Associations discussed the current state of planning for this series of events. EuropaBio will open the week with a political event at the European Parliament on 12 October. A European Medicines Agency / EuropaBIO Day will be held on 15 and 16 October.