Iceland's Life Sciences Landscape

Of the many sectors in Iceland that have made rapid progress in recent years, the life sciences sector has experienced the greatest growth. This is a relatively new industry and includes areas such as biotechnology and health sciences. Again, health science is a broad term that encompasses medical devices, pharmaceutical products and nutritional supplements. Most of these areas rely heavily on research and development to come up with new ideas and products. Of course, this also means that a lot of investment goes into these areas. Iceland is touted as an ideal destination for companies looking to invest in the life sciences in Iceland.

Early Days and A Long Way to Go

As this is a new development, the life science sector has yet to record a large turnover. The average turnover in 2017 was around $825,000. In the meantime, it could be around $1 million. These companies do not have a large number of employees in Iceland either. They may be small companies and it could be a while before the big players decide to open their branches here. It must be admitted that Iceland, with its very small population, does not offer a lucrative domestic market. They will need to have enough export orders for the products manufactured by the companies operating in the life sciences sector in Iceland.

Promoting Iceland as a Favorable Destination

There are organisations in Iceland that promote Iceland as the best place to locate bioscience factories and laboratories. These organisations highlight the advantages that a potential investor can hope for here. These include incentives granted by the government to project promoters at the time of investment. The tax system in Iceland is quite soft; the corporate tax is only 20%.

Most importantly, life sciences in Iceland require intellectual capital in abundance. There is a sufficient number of highly qualified men and women in Iceland who can be recruited by these companies.

Another important area for companies operating in the highly technology-orientated life sciences industry is that they all hold many patents for their work. These patents relate to secret formulas and other inventions and they seek copyright protection. Iceland already has strict laws that provide this protection.

These will be emphasised through roadshows in different parts of the world so that the leading companies in the sector can consider the move.

Domestic Companies Are Also Involved

It is not the case that only foreign investors are being sought to set up companies in the life sciences sector in Iceland. There are several local companies that are already active. These include deCODE Genetics, Prokarria, ORF Genetics, Matis and Nox Medical. Companies such as Alvotec and Alvogen are multinational companies operating in the life sciences sector in Iceland. There are many more companies in this sector.

Some of the specialities currently being worked on in this sector in Iceland are the development of novel enzymes from the biodiversity of Iceland´s geothermal areas, the production of biopharmaceuticals and of (recombinant) proteins from transgenic barley, which have been presented by the respective companies at the roadshows promoting Iceland.

Great Academic Support

The University of Iceland has its own Department of Biosciences and a facility called the BioMedical Centre. These are academic institutions that develop a close relationship with industry in order to work together on research projects. University students gain immense practical knowledge through these projects. The industry benefits by directly employing these talents.

The BioMedical Centre has involved several other universities in its efforts to research the life sciences.

The future of the life sciences industry in Iceland seems quite bright and many forces are directly and indirectly involved in driving the movement forward.

If you require any kind of help in Iceland contact Swapp Agency .