BioFlorida is the voice of Florida’s life sciences industry, representing more than 3,000 companies and research organizations in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, biofuels and bioagriculture fields that together employ 61,000 Floridians. BioFlorida’s member-driven initiatives provide a strong business climate for production of quality, life-improving technologies and promote economic benefits to the state.
BioFlorida serves its members by providing an infrastructure to exchange information and ideas through industry specific programming, education, networking and legislative initiatives. It focuses on creating and maintaining a favorable business and legislative environment; advancing the commercialization of research; and works with investors, private enterprise, government, academia and the financial/service sectors to further develop existing companies, launch start-up companies and attract new business to Florida.
BioFlorida is a statewide association, with seven Regional Chapters that:
- Help facilitate communication with members at the local level
- Provide enhanced services to members
- Provide education and support to bioscience organizations throughout the state, and
- Disseminate information on topics of interest to members in each respective region.
In 2012, Florida’s biotechnology sector outpaced the national average, growing by 60 percent over the past five years compared to a nationwide increase of less than 5 percent, according to a BioFlorida report released this year. Furthermore, Florida has experienced a 13.5 percent increase in the number of biotech companies since the first quarter of 2012. The second edition of Florida’s BioPulse provides top-level insight on the growth of the industry by the University of Florida’s Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator. The analysis is based on the Florida BioDatabase plus a selection of talent development programs at top academic and learning institutions in Florida.
“Florida is shaping itself to become one of the leading states for bioscience innovation, business development and job growth,” said David L. Day, Director, UF Office of Technology Licensing, Director, UF Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator, and Vice Chair of BioFlorida.
BioFlorida was founded in 1997 as a means to unite and support a small group of entrepreneurs. The organization grew from the ardent efforts of a determined few, including Mr. Weaver Gaines, Dr. Sheldon Schuster, Ms. Cecilia Bryant, Mr. Ray Briscuso, and Mr. David Gury. It grew from an organization of less than 50 members that first year to several thousand currently. After actively serving on the BioFlorida Board of Directors for six years, Sue Washer, President and CEO of Applied Genetic Technologies Corp., served as Chair of BioFlorida from 2010 to 2012. Although she would be the first to say that working in biotechnology is a “team sport,” many attribute BioFlorida’s growth to Washer’s proactive leadership. Today, BioFlorida represents a broad range of companies and institutions in various sectors of the life science industry.
BioFlorida Membership
Membership includes dozens of partner organizations, service providers and suppliers committed to supporting the life sciences industry and academic institutions. Florida has more than a dozen world-class research centers and key academic institutions including the University of Florida, named by the Milken Institute as the top performing public institution at transferring its research to the marketplace, and the Scripps Research Institute, one of the largest private non-profit biomedical research organizations in the world. Other significant institutes that have contributed to Florida’s recent biomedical growth include Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, Max Planck Florida Institute, Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, Miami Institute for Human Genomics, Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute Florida, SRI International, and Draper Labs, as well as strong research centers at every major public university in Florida.
The Northeast Chapter of BioFlorida
The Northeast Chapter of BioFlorida encompasses the region of Gainesville, Alachua, and Jacksonville. It is active and well connected.
Chapter Events
Events have covered topics such as:
- Equity financing of bioscience companies
- Current trends in the bioscience industry
- Getting government grants and contracts
- Mobile health (the use of mobile devices to treat, diagnose, and educate patients)
The most recent chapter events have been in collaboration with the Southeastern Medical Device Association (SEMDA) and the Gainesville Area Innovation Network (GAIN). The Northeast Chapter also recently partnered with Gainesville’s Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention by assisting in promoting and judging the 2013 Cade Museum Prize.
In May 2013, the Northeast Chapter hosted the 10th Annual Celebration of Biotechnology in Alachua at RTI Surgical, Inc. in Progress Corporate Park. It drew nearly 600 attendees and featured more than 70 scientific and other vendors, a bus tour of Progress Corporate Park and a program that celebrated and acknowledged the local successes of the bioscience industry over the past year
Outreach and Education
Currently, the Northeast Chapter is working on a professional development initiative for secondary school teachers focused on updating scientific knowledge and laboratory experience. The program will include a summer internship in which teacher-interns spend a portion of their summer working within a local bioscience company, performing industry-relevant research within laboratories and manufacturing facilities and accumulating valuable hands-on experience for application in the classroom. This program will help serve the local innovation community by positively impacting many future community members through our educators.
The Annual Conference
This year’s Annual Conference will take place September 15-17, at the Tampa Marriott Waterside. Building on the conference theme “Collaboration Makes Innovation Happen,” attendees from across the nation will converge in Tampa to hear about scientific innovations, new business ventures, federal and state legislation, and regulatory environment. Companies will have the opportunity to pitch venture capitalists and angel investors on their innovative technologies, products and business models, share their successes and discuss collaborative opportunities.
Keynotes include:
- Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, State of Florida
- Kathy Castor, Congresswoman, 14th District of Florida
- Randal J. Kirk, Intrexon
- WP Andrew Lee, MD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
- Stephen B. Liggett, MD, University of South Florida