A US venture with a seaweed harvesting firm based on Uist “shows the impact” American investment is having the length and breadth of Scotland, according to Scottish Economy Secretary Keith Brown.
The MSP’s comments come after life sciences inward investor Acadian Seaplants recently acquired Uist Asco, a seaweed business on North Uist.
The country received another boost yesterday with the announcement of the creation of 43 new jobs by Glasgow-based BioClavis as part of a £10.5million investment.
Bioclavis is a new spin-out from Californian molecular profiling company Biospyder, to be based at the Clinical Innovation Zone at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.
BioSpyder’s investment has been supported by a £4.5million Seek and Solve research and development grant from Scottish Enterprise.
With the funding BioClavis will adapt BioSpyder’s TempO-Seq platform technology into a novel diagnostic tool for precision medicine in a number of high-value clinical indications, in close collaboration with the health service and university researchers.
The economy secretary is visiting the US and Canada promoting Scotland to the business community.
Mr Brown said: “This is an exciting time for life sciences businesses in Scotland. The sector is strong and continuing to grow –providing employment for over 37,000 people.
“This government has worked hard to enhance Scotland’s growing reputation as a global centre of excellence for clinical research.”
Earlier in the week Mr Brown met life sciences inward investor Acadian Seaplants after it acquired Uist Asco. He added: “The recent acquisition of Uist Asco by Acadian Seaplants shows that investment from North American companies is having an impact the length and breadth of the country. Acadian Seaplants is a world leader in the processing of seaweed-based products and it’s great to see them bringing their skills, knowledge and expertise to Scotland.”
Nova Scotia’s Acadian Seaplants is a global bio-tech company and the largest independent manufacturer of marine plant products of its type in the world.
At the time of the acquisition the company’s president and chief executive officer, Jean-Paul Deveau, said: “I would like to acknowledge the achievements of Raghnall Maclain, who, with the support of his family, has brought Uist Asco to this stage of development.”
Welcoming these significant investments Paul Lewis, managing director of Scottish Development International, said: “Scotland continues to be a leading location for foreign direct investment and these two latest investments reflect our expertise in the life sciences sector, the skills of our people and the quality of our business environment. We look forward to working with BioSpyder, BioClavis and Arcadian Seaplants as they become the newest members of Scotland’s growing inward investment community.”
