Fierce diabetes industry competition in Canada

The Calgary company SemBioSys are causing a stir in the Canadian diabetes industry. Following their recent announcement that they could produce insulin at a commercially viable level in a genetically modified safflower, the company have attracted a stream of potential investors .
The companies burning up the SemBioSys phone line are all looking for partnership, to bring the pioneering insulin product to the market . The chief executive, Mr. Andrew Baum, reported: “Some of the usual suspects and not-so-usual suspects have been calling us up saying when can we get together and talk about how we might work together. I characterize the partnership process as kind of like dating. To this point I would say we’ve been flirting with potential partners … I think we’re going to start dating. Hopefully we’ll get married once we announce our pre-clinical data .”
Baum also made the point that the Canadian diabetes companies could play a large part in the next wave of diabetes treatment developments.
The Canadian diabetes situation is increasing rapidly, with a projected population increase to 2.7 million by 2010. Mr. Rodrigues, the chairman of the national research council for the Canadian Diabetes Associatio, called the emerging Canadian diabetes market ‘huge.’