The Western Australian State Agricultural Biotechnology Centre (SABC)

The WA State Agricultural Biotechnology Centre (SABC) is the major resource for agricultural biotechnology in the State.

It was established ten years ago following a recommendation of the Mulcahy Committee on Rural Science in WA, and has gradually consolidated facilities and equipment.

In 2002, about 180 researchers use the SABC facilities, including 75 external researchers.

The total research spend is about $7 million pa, with infrastructure of about the same value.

The SABC fulfills three roles in WA ? firstly, organised research groups carry out high quality R&D in more traditional research programs, secondly, it acts as a "Research Hotel" to provide wide access to researchers in from a range of organizations that would otherwise not be able to afford the platform technologies, and thirdly, it acts as a bio-incubator for new companies in agricultural biotechnology.

The SABC is recognised as a model for cost effectiveness, open access and well maintained state-of-the-art equipment for molecular research (eg by the Australian Research Council).

At the molecular level the same kinds of equipment are required for research in plant, animal or microbial systems, and the multidisciplinarity of the SABC is noted as a major asset.

It means there is a critical mass of scientists in agricultural biotechnology, and justifies the purchase of major platform technologies that are extremely expensive, and cannot be justified in isolation.

For example, recent successful Australian Research Council large equipment grants have provided exciting new cutting-edge equipment in genomics and proteomics, together with construction of much needed support infrastructure such as high quality containment glasshouses and growth chambers.

These facilities enable WA researchers to compete realistically for major national research centres in agricultural biotechnology, and promise major advances in the future.

The success of the SABC concept, recognised by the State government as a "Centre of Excellence in Industry-Focussed R&D" can be measured by the fact that the WA Department of Agriculture has co-located its agricultural biotechnology laboratory with the SABC, and new research centres (ACNFP and CHAGA) have been established, with the appointment of three new Research Professors (Richard Oliver, Rudi Appels and Keith Gregg).

In addition, SABC facilities have supported the establishment of the companies Grain Biotech Australia, Proteomics International, Saturn Biotech and ID+PLUS.

We look forward to further consolidation on the Murdoch campus, and the creation of a science-based cluster of successful companies located here.

Mike Jones

Director SABC