Last Wednesday, an afternoon seminar was held in Portland to consider biotechnology in the global marketplace. It was free and, of the 73 attendees, only one person was from Lewiston and one from western Maine.

If businesses don’t show active interest in learning about global opportunities, how can they possibly expect to expand their markets?

Of those attending the conference, 45 percent were from Portland and another 17 percent from the Portland area. Nine percent came from Augusta and 6 percent from Bangor.

These are cities that folks from Lewiston and Auburn frequently believe receive more favor than the Twin Cities. Well, if companies from these cities send people to conferences to learn about economic opportunities, that’s the kind of initiative that gets rewarded.

The only representative from Lewiston was Jacolyn Bailey of the Maine International Trade Center, the organization presenting the conference. And, from western Maine, it was Peter Thibeault of Delphi Global Services Inc., a company with a Massachusetts-area office number.

The purpose of the conference was not limited to introducing global biotech opportunities, but talking to participants about greater cooperation in-state.

Maybe part of the problem is that it’s tough to define exactly what biotechnology is, tough to muster the interest in spending an afternoon away from productive pursuits at the office.

Biotechnology is applied science, or what Douglas Johnson, executive director of the Maine Biotechnology Information Bureau, calls the business of living things. It is something to be considered by manufacturers and farmers alike.

The business of living things — biotechnology — has been identified as one of the growth industries in Maine. And why not? With our vast natural resources, growing things is our business.

The forestry industry is a good example. If we want to compete on a global scale, Maine has to figure out how to produce more raw material better, faster and cheaper than anyone else. If we don’t, we may have to surrender to Canadian and overseas markets.

The same thing is true for aquaculture. If we use biotechnology to improve the rate of growth on fish farms, we increase marketable products. If we don’t, Douglas points out, Chile or other sea-bordering nations will.

ImmuCell of Portland has used biotechnology to develop oral immunizations against bovine coronavirus and escharicha coli for newborn calves, preventing sickness, which increases milk production for farmers nationwide. That’s good for consumers and farmers.

The possibilities for biotechnology-based business in western and central Maine are endless. For the region to advance, though, entrepreneurs and economic development advisers have to learn as much as they can about innovations and how to break into local and international markets. They can’t let opportunities like Wednesday’s conference pass by.
jmeyer@sunjournal.com