Keeping data flowing and soil healthy

If you’re reading this, you know the biotech industry is becoming increasingly data driven—and there’s a need for companies to access data from across the globe in a timely manner. Here’s an update on what BIO’s International Affairs team has been doing to make this happen. 

We joined EuropaBIO,which represents the European biotech sector, in a response to a public consultation on a European Strategy for Data.

In our joint letter to the European Commission, we highlighted the importance of a robust and reliable global data ecosystem necessary to enable innovation in the life sciences, while also underscoring the importance of transatlantic scientific collaborations.   

We also illustrated how ambiguities in the implementation of the General Data Protection Rule (GDPR) across EU Member States impact biotech innovation and slow down global R&D collaborations by limiting access to and use of scientifically relevant data. 

Around the world we’ve also been seeing a rise in measures that restrict the flow of data needed to drive life science innovation.

In China, for example, the People’s National Congress has proposed a draft Biosecurity Law, which Reuters says is being promoted as a way to “prevent infectious diseases and other ‘biological threats,’ but…could discourage potential whistleblowers and put the public at risk.” 

The law would restrict all data resulting from cross-border scientific collaborations from leaving China without government approval—and without the partnering Chinese entity retaining some sort of rights over any technologies eventually developed. 

If implemented, the law could have a major impact on the ability of foreign entities to collaborate with Chinese researchers to advance science, as we said in our letter to China’s People’s National Congress. 

Why it matters: The convergence of big data and biotech advances in biotechnology is unleashing a new wave of innovations, particularly from small and medium-sized enterprises, with the potential to profoundly improve quality of life around the world. Medicine will be revolutionized by better diagnostics and cures for diseases. Food security will be improved by enhanced quality and quantity in food and feedstuffs. Our ability to respond to climate change will improve by moving the world towards biobased and zero-waste economies. 

The bottom line: We need to ensure data laws support data-driven innovations in life sciences, and global collaboration to help us address the world’s biggest challenges. – Matt O’Mara, BIO’s Vice President of International Affairs

Dr. Rattan Lal is the 2020 World Food Prize winner, a refugee who worked on a small subsistence farm in India and went on to pioneer research in soil health that “has been pivotal in enhancing the productivity and sustainability of global agricultural systems,” according to the announcement.

The 2020 World Food Prize Laureate is a “soil trailblazer.” Dr. Lal developed and put into action “a soil-centric approach to increasing food production that conserves natural resources and mitigates climate change,” according to the announcement.

Specifically: “He explored and transformed techniques such as no-tillage, cover cropping, mulching and agroforestry that protected the soil from the elements, conserved water and returned nutrients, carbon and organic matter to the soil. This in turn improved the long-term sustainability of agroecosystems and minimized the risks to farmers of droughts, floods, and other effects of a changing climate.” 

He's also researched carbon sequestration in soil, showing the world how soil can be “an important part of mitigating climate change.”

What they’re saying: “The world’s population continues to grow, and we need to use the resources we have more productively and efficiently to make sure everyone has enough food on their table,” said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. “Dr. Lal’s research in soil science shows that the solution to this problem is right under our feet. He’s helping the earth’s estimated 500 million small farmers be faithful stewards of their land though improved management, less soil degradation, and the recycling of nutrients. The billions of people who depend on these farms stand to benefit greatly from his work.”

We congratulate Dr. Lal! BIO agrees that we need to find more ways to increase food production while preserving the environment—including and especially soil health—if we want to tackle the dual challenges of economic turmoil and climate change. Science discovered by trailblazers like Dr. Lal can help. 

Read more about why carbon sequestration in soil is an important in solving climate change and boosting rural economies.

More Agriculture & Environment News: 

Bloomberg: There’s low risk of food spreading the virus, experts say after salmon panic
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NPR: Cows help with COVID-19 treatment, no bull
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