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40 SPRING 2018 "The reality is you touch bioscience probably 10 times before you ever make it to the office," she says. "It's from the food that you eat to … medications to your smartwatch that's gathering data on your health, but also looking at what's happening on our farms in terms of clean technology and reducing waste and improving our environment." Bioscience is also improving our economy. "We estimate that the revenue from bioscience companies in the province is about $2.5 billion. We think it probably exceeds it, but that's a number we're comfortable with," Maconachie says. She notes that 82 per cent of that revenue is generated through exports, meaning those are new dollars coming into the province. And bioscience companies are attracting significant investments in research and development, as well. "We bring in approximately $40 million to be invested in Manitoba businesses," she ways. "We need it to continue to grow, but we're actually seeing larger investments in R&D and in the development of Manitoba-made products in the last two years than we've seen previously." One reason is that some companies are edging closer to bringing their products to market. One of them is Cerebra Health, which has developed a home diagnostic tool for sleep apnea and other sleep disorders. "This is an at-home unit that is as accurate if not more accurate than what you would see in a hospital setting, and that's a Manitoba-made technology that is just in the early stages of being made available to patients," Maconachie says. BAM vice-chair Mark Lobe, Emergent BioSolutions Winnipeg vice-president and general manager, says bringing a bioscience product to market could take 10 and even 20 years, and cost hundreds of millions of dollars. In Manitoba, companies of all sizes have products in various stages of development, and BAM is helping to connect them, so they can share knowledge and expertise and explore opportunities to collaborate. "There are so many different companies and industries that it reaches that I think that's the space that BAM is really playing is bringing those individuals together." Lobe says. One of the newest sectors in the province's Sector Council program, BAM intends to respond to a recent request for proposals for funding to bolster workforce training and development. BAM started out more than 20 years ago as a training organization primarily focused on health care, and it has been at the forefront of training for bioscience companies and startup businesses as the sector has evolved. Lobe notes that the average annual salary in biosciences is $77,000, in a broad range of jobs from research to front-line manufacturing, technical trades and administrative support. "Because it's so diverse, it touches so many different degrees or educational pieces, so many different trades, so many different experiences and I think that's really healthy for the province." Manitoba is Canada's third-largest centre for pharmaceutical manufacturing, at companies like Emergent BioSolutions, Valeant Pharmaceuticals and Vita Health Products. Clean technology and plant proteins are growth areas, and if you're looking for a smart investment, think of one word: Neutraceuticals. "One thing I get asked often is, 'What is going to be the next big thing, where is the next opportunity for Manitoba?' " Maconachie says. "I think looking to the future we've got great opportunities if we start looking at the healthy food component and looking at neutraceuticals and where we're going to be able to go with how the food that we consume will improve our health care … if we start to look at our food production, look at it with a more scientific eye and really enhance not only what's coming off our crops but how we process it, we're going to create greater nutritional value and put us back on the radar screen as being the breadbasket for the world." ■ "The reality is you touch bioscience probably 10 times before you ever make it to the office..." << CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS

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