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Harrisburg University  »  HU and U  »  Academics  »  Undergraduate  »  Biotechnology

Biotechnology Industry Facts*

• The biotechnology industry originated in the 1970s, based largely on a new recombinant DNA. Recombinant DNA is a method of making proteins-such as human insulin and other therapies-in cultured cells under controlled manufacturing conditions.
• Biotechnology has created more than 200 new therapies and vaccines, including products to treat cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and autoimmune disorders.
• There are more than 400 biotech drug products and vaccines currently in clinical trials targeting more than 200 diseases, including various cancers, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, AIDS and arthritis.
• Biotechnology is responsible for hundreds of medical diagnostic tests.
• Consumers are enjoying biotechnology foods such as papaya, soybeans and corn. Biopesticides and other agricultural products also are being used to improve our food supply and to reduce our dependence on conventional chemical pesticides.
• Environmental biotechnology products make it possible to clean up hazardous waste more efficiently by harnessing pollution-eating microbes without the use of caustic chemicals.
• Industrial biotechnology applications have led to cleaner processes that produce less waste and use less energy and water in such industrial sectors as chemicals, pulp and paper, textiles, food, energy, and metals and minerals. For example, most laundry detergents produced in the United States contain biotechnology-based enzymes.
• DNA fingerprinting, a biotech process, has dramatically improved criminal investigation and forensic medicine, as well as afforded significant advances in anthropology and wildlife management.
• The biotech industry is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Agriculture (USDA).
• There are more than 1,500 biotechnology companies in the United States.
• Biotechnology is one of the most research-intensive industries in the world.
• The biosciences-including not just biotechnology but all life sciences activities-employs nearly 1.5 million people in the United States.
• The average annual wage of U.S. bioscience workers was $65,775 in 2004, more than $26,000 greater than the average private sector annual wage.
• Bioethanol-made from crop wastes using biotech enzymes-could meet a quarter of U.S. energy needs by 2025.

* Courtesy of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).