Getting warmed up for BIOSPAIN 2025 with clear commitment to innovation and strategic autonomy

Madrid hosted the first public presentation of BIOSPAIN 2025 outside of Catalonia, at an institutional event and panel discussion organized jointly by the Spanish Bioindustry Association (AseBio) and Biocat on April 28. The event, which took place at Madrid’s DAY ONE space, featured Biocat CEO Robert Fabregat, who highlighted the need to promote real, sustained collaboration among all the sector’s stakeholders, overcoming the traditional gap between the private and public arenas. Fabregat noted, “Only through early dialog and mutual trust can we accelerate the development and implementation of innovations that address the sector’s greatest challenges.” He also stressed the role of Barcelona and Catalonia as European benchmarks in innovation, highlighting that hosting BIOSPAIN in the city through 2029 is a great opportunity to consolidate this leadership and build new strategic partnerships to tackle the challenges of the future.

Barcelona, meeting point for biotechnology innovation and sustainability

During the event, AseBio Chairwoman Rocío Arroyo shared some of the changes to look out for at the 2025 edition: 

• This year, BIOSPAIN will focus on the latest innovations in genomics, gene editing (CRISPR), oncology therapy, immunotherapy and synthetic biology, with over 60 sessions on these leading areas. 
• One thing that is new this year is the Green Innovation Forum, a space exclusively for companies working in agricultural, food and industrial biotechnology that focus on sustainability and the transition towards a decarbonized economy.
• The event will still have a space for networking, fostering connections among companies, research centers, institutions and investors from all over the world. Turnout is expected to match or beat the 2023 record: more than 2,200 participants, nearly 1,000 companies from 34 countries and over 5,000 one-to-one meetings.

Arroyo said, “BIOSPAIN 2025 is not only bolstering its role as the benchmark event for biotechnology in Spain, it is taking another step towards consolidating its place as a major European hub for the sector. With this year’s theme, we hope to project our ecosystem in the world, without losing sight of the wealth, talent and vibrancy of our closest neighbors. Plus, this year’s event will be key to understanding the main challenges facing the biotechnology sector, from research to marketing disruptive innovations, and how these challenges are driving us to find collaborative, sustainable solutions”.

Biotechnology industry, key to EU strategic autonomy

The event also included a panel discussion, moderated by AseBio CEO Ion Arocena, featuring Carles Fàbrega, managing director of Human Health at HIPRA; Isabel Portero, CEO of Biohope; and Marina Pollán, director of the Carlos III Health Institute. The session tackled issues like Europe’s ability to ensure access to strategic healthcare technologies, the role biotechnology companies play in this process, and the challenges the sector is facing in the drive for technological sovereignty.

During the discussion, Fàbrega argued the need for a more stable, streamlined European regulatory framework to scale up innovation and strengthen internal industrial capacity. Pollán highlighted the role translational research plays in changing and saving lives and noted that BIOSPAIN is a key meeting point for driving truly impactful knowledge transfer in healthcare. And Portero called for more support for biotechnology SMEs, including mechanisms for public procurement of innovations and channels for early communication with regulatory agencies.

BIOSPAIN 2025 will take place from October 7 to 9 in the Catalan capital, epicenter of biotechnology in Spain and one of the main healthcare innovation hubs in Europe, which is not only repeating its role as host city after the resounding success of 2023, but has also been confirmed as the venue for the 2027 and 2029 editions. 

Any companies interested in exhibiting in the BioRegion of Catalonia pavilion can sign up using the form on the Biocat website.