Jan. 27, 2022

This paid piece is sponsored by South Dakota Biotech.

South Dakota’s bioscience industry is thriving both in spite of the pandemic and because of it.

“The last year has shown the potential we’ve seen in the state for bioscience growth start to be realized,” said Joni Ekstrum, executive director of South Dakota Biotech, state affiliate of the international BIO organization.

“We saw a number of key developments within the industry, but we also are investing in the future in a big way – collaborating with other industries, supporting startups and connecting with our communities.”

Business growth

It doesn’t get much bigger for a biotech startup for an IPO – usually.

“In the case of SAB Biotherapeutics, absolutely 2021 will be remembered as the year the company went public, but the year also was filled with milestones related to its biopharmaceutical products, especially SAB-185, its therapeutic for COVID-19,” Ekstrum said.

Sioux Falls-based SAB Biotherapeutics began trading on the Nasdaq in late October and has experienced significant advancement with multiple therapeutics. Its novel therapeutics for COVID-19 and influenza are in various stages of clinical trials, and federal funding awards since March 2020 have exceeded $200 million.

“The bioscience industry doesn’t expect to see stories like this coming out of South Dakota, so the role SAB is playing to advance the industry here can’t be overstated,” Ekstrum said. “We anticipate 2022 will be a year that continues to show the promise of this game-changing company.”

Energy innovator POET also had a year of milestones, including its first solar farm, now helping power the company’s Sioux Falls headquarters.

It serves as an example of the types of solar projects POET can help construct for others, the company said.

POET also released its inaugural sustainability report, pledging to transition its bioprocessing facilities to carbon neutrality by 2050.

Supporting innovation

South Dakota Biotech begins 2022 in a strong position to help advance the industry statewide.

Thanks to an SBA grant awarded in 2021, the association is able to hold everything from startup boot camps to regional summits, focused on connecting biotech businesses at all stages of growth with the resources they need.

“We’re interested in helping advance the work being done at a very grassroots level by injecting these additional resources,” Ekstrum said. “We’re particularly interested in increasing diversity among our entrepreneurs, and this grant funding will allow us to tap the potential we know exists in South Dakota.”

South Dakota Biotech also increasingly is working with the manufacturing industry to explore opportunities for collaboration.

“The pandemic has led to a greater interest in domestic manufacturing, and health care-related manufacturing already was a growth opportunity,” Ekstrum said. “South Dakota is strong in this sector, and we see a lot of possibilities to connect the bioscience community with the manufacturing resources they need.”

Adding resources

Biotech entrepreneurs also are able to access growing resources statewide.

In Rapid City, a new accelerator building is designed to blend startup office space with community resources.

“We’re excited to see biotech grow on the west side of the state, particularly given the fantastic work being done at School of Mines that’s already translated to startups in other sectors,” Ekstrum said. “The affordable space, including the potential for wet labs, is going to be attractive to biotech tenants.”

And within South Dakota Biotech, members and prospective members now have an additional resource in Shannon Van Buskirk, who joined the team as the member relations specialist in late 2021.

You’ll see her hit the ground running this year, including organizing events, learning opportunities and ways to get the word out about the momentum the biotech industry is experiencing.

“Our membership is growing, but so is our industry, so we know there are many companies that still can benefit from connecting to us or becoming more involved,” Ekstrum said. “We look forward to meeting many of them in the months ahead.”

South Dakota Biotech members benefit from multiple opportunities for savings that directly impact their work in the field.

Thanks to an agreement with Fisher Scientific, South Dakota Biotech members received more than $10.2 million in savings off list price in the first three quarters of 2021 for a huge range of laboratory equipment and related items.

Those can include everything from gloves to glassware, lab coats to chemicals and major pieces of equipment.

Members also saved more than $188,000 in freight costs related to their Fischer orders thanks to this valuable program.

“There are significant costs to research and development before innovations can ever come to market, and this program helps absorb some of those costs,” Ekstrum said.

“And to make this opportunity even more beneficial, Fisher Scientific contributes to South Dakota Biotech to advance our broader goals for the industry.”

South Dakota Biotech also offers a growing range of business-service savings for members, including significant discounts at UPS on shipping and Office Depot on supplies.

“Whether you need recruitment services, a moving company or a microscope system, we have a partnership that will bring you immediate savings,” Ekstrum said. “One of our goals for the coming year is making sure companies both directly related to biotech and those looking to connect with and support this industry know the many benefits of membership are growing all the time.”

Want to connect with South Dakota Biotech? Click here or email [email protected] or [email protected].