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Hollandbio welcomes Anacura as new member

Hollandbio connects, represents, and supports the Dutch life science sector. We are very proud that we already represent 275 companies: from start-ups, small and medium-sized companies to large companies, active in health, food, or the biobased economy. Today, we are happy to introduce our newest member Anacura, the independent analytical center of excellence providing end-to-end life science services – from early lab concept to fully regulated product. Headquartered in Belgium, Anacura offers scientifically-based and personalized laboratory solutions at uncompromising quality for biotech and pharma partners. A few words from the Anacura team:  

“Built on our 25+ years of experience, we have developed a unique, integrated CRO platform with fully equipped in-house laboratories that brings the expertise of three specialized units—Anabiotec, OHMX.bio, and Discovery Studio—under one roof, guiding your project seamlessly from early discovery to GxP regulatory approval.

Anabiotec offers analytical development, method validation, regulated testing (GxP) and quality control required to make sure your product is safe, reliable, and ready for clinical use and market. By our comprehensive analytical solutions, we help pharma and biotech navigate the complex regulatory requirements of drug development.

OHMX.bio employs multi-omics and bio-IT solutions to map out the complex biology behind your therapeutic. By looking deeply into DNA, RNA, epigenetics and proteomics we turn complicated biological data into clear, practical insights for research and clinical studies.

Discovery Studio is the biotech accelerator that act as your early-stage launchpad. By hands-on cell & gene lab work and in-depth data analysis, we figure out if the biological concept actually works, helping you validate your ideas quickly and confidently.

Our team stands out by its flexible and expert-led solutions from early discovery to GxP approval. Clients highlight our dedicated project management as a key asset, ensuring that milestones are consistently met on time and risks are mitigated.

As Business Development Manager for Anacura within the Netherlands, Laurens Raes facilitates the bridge between Dutch innovation and our unified CRO platform, and serves as your primary point of contact.”

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MEPs join biotech sector to urge moving forward with Biotech Act II

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Members of the European Parliament are joining forces with the biotech sector to urge the European Commission to move forward with the promised Biotech Act II – echoing earlier calls from biotech actors to act now. In a letter sent to Executive Vice President Stéphane Séjourné, lawmakers and the European Biosolutions Coalition stress that Biotech Act II is not optional. While the first Act focused on pharmaceuticals, the second is essential to unlock the full biotech ecosystem. Without it, cross‑sector barriers will continue to block biotech solutions from reaching the market and scaling across the Single Market. Delays only make Europe slower, not safer, the signatories warn. “We risk missing a major competitiveness opportunity” – one that Europe simply cannot afford.

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Biotech beleidsmakers en bedrijven op bezoek bij hollandbio

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Vorige week bracht hollandbio beleidsmakers en biotechbedrijven samen om tijdens een  Lunch & Learn te praten over de toekomst van biotech in Nederland en Europa. In de zaal zaten vertegenwoordigers van ministeries die werken aan de nationale biotechvisie en de Europese Biotech Act, RVO en Invest-NL, én bedrijven uit medische, voeding- en industriële biotech. Samen met hen spraken we open over wat nodig is om de ambities uit de Visie Biotech, het Rapport Wennink, het Industriebeleid en de Nationale Technologiestrategie waar te maken. SentryX, The Protein Brewery en Novonesis lieten zien hoe biotech nu al bijdraagt aan maatschappelijke uitdagingen, waar zij belemmeringen ervaren en welke randvoorwaarden nodig zijn om impact op te schalen. De rode draad: biotech maakt het leven beter, maar alleen als we samenwerken. En dat vraagt om vertrouwen, duidelijkheid en tempo.

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Dutch Life Sciences Trend Analysis 2026 – biotech is on the map, but still looking for a way up

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While Dutch & European governments are prioritising biotech, the Dutch Life Science Trend Analysis shows a decline on multiple metrics. The number of companies founded, assets in (pre)clinical development & total funding amounts of last year all decreased compared to 2024. This came to light through the Dutch Trend Analysis Report 2026 from the leading global biotech database Biotechgate in collaboration with hollandbio. The annual report provides an in-depth look at funding patterns, company formation, and international benchmarks.

The growth we hoped for is not yet there

The 2025 data reinforce the ‘winner takes it all’ trend we flagged last year: an increasing concentration of capital among a small group of winners. In the report on 2024, Dutch venture financing continued to grow, showing a 10% increase compared to the previous year. And while hollandbio was hoping for a continuation of this growth, the report shows otherwise. The total biotech funding amount of 2025 is similar to that of 2024 (-2,3%), while the number of rounds is decreasing. This implies that although the average round size is increasing, total funding is not. Luckily, a few Dutch companies were able to raise significant funding in 2025, including Leyden Labs, Avidicure and The Protein Brewery.

The data sends out another worrying signal: the decreasing number of assets in development (-10%). Leading fields are still oncology, neurology and infectiology. As the risk of technical failure is high in biotech, a pipeline with sufficient assets in development is of crucial importance. In addition, since 2020, the number of companies founded has been declining. The international data show that this is not a Dutch problem, though: all benchmarked countries show a decline in company foundation. Hollandbio sees this as a real threat for the future, as today’s start-ups and clinical assets are tomorrow’s changemakers.

International Benchmark: ups and downs

Although it is a mixed bag, the international benchmark leaves room for some good news, too. The Netherlands scores excellently when it comes to the number of companies per million inhabitants: only Denmark and Switzerland do better. Also, the Dutch ecosystem is home to more food, agriculture and materials biotech compared to other countries. Yet, when looking at the health applications, specifically the assets in clinical development, we are down in the charts, with countries such as the United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland and the United States way ahead of us.

The US still play a different league compared to Europe when it comes to funding: even though the total equity capital raised there has declined significantly (-15%), US companies raised 4x the amount of equity capital. Also, the increasing amount of equity capital raised in China is relevant. Although not included in the report, the Chinese equity capital raised for biotech is over 50% of the total capital raised in Europe and growing(1).

Time to act now

The story told by the trend analysis is not a positive one for Europe and the Netherlands. The report’s data reflects reality – and must underscore the urgency of the challenges we face. European biotech is losing momentum to the US and China. Dutch companies keep looking at the US for an IPO and one of the only Dutch biotech’s listed in Amsterdam is openly doubting a focus on the US stock market. On top of that, securing early-stage funding remains a serious challenge and an increasing number of companies are filing for bankruptcy.

Europe needs to step up to remain a global player in biotech. Luckily, the European Commission and the Dutch national government see this, and have published plans to turn the tide: the EU Biotech Act, The Dutch Biotech Vision and Wennink Report present ambitious goals to help the EU biotech sector thrive. Unfortunately, nice words on paper do not fund start-ups or help companies scale – only actions do. It is time for bold moves. It is time to act now.

Through the challenges, we do see some positives too: the recent acquisition of Merus by Genmab, large funding rounds by Azafaros and Leyden Labs and the IPO of Dutch-tinted Agomab. At hollandbio, we continue to put effort in the best possible funding ecosystem for every stage of development, from early grants to M&A and IPO. We will remain committed to have more of these Dutch and European success stories in the future.

Do you have any questions or remarks on this Dutch Trend Analysis? Please reach out to hollandbio’s Max

(1). BiotechGate

Netherlands Trend Analysis Report 2026_final 30_3_2026Downloaden

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Dutch assessment of the EU Biotech Act: no guts no glory?

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In December 2025, the European Commission unveiled Part I of the EU Biotech Act, a long-awaited signal that Europe aims to unlock biotech’s full potential. During the holidays, the Dutch government dove into the EU proposals to draft its assessment, a so-called BNC-fiche. And, as the Netherlands does not shy away from communicating its strong ambition when it comes to biotech, hollandbio had high hopes that the Dutch government would call for even bolder moves, including proper EU and national resourcing and a broader scope of the Act. The current act still risks falling short of being the breakthrough the EU needs in a highly competitive global landscape. But unfortunately, we felt the official assessment of the EU Biotech Act Part I to be somewhat disappointing.

As expected, the Dutch fiche does embrace biotech’s role in strengthening Europe’s competitiveness, along with attention to workability, harmonisation, and Dutch best practices. But at the same time, the overall stance is surprisingly cautious, in contrast to the previously published broad, forward‑leaning Dutch non‑paper and national biotech vision. Rather than seizing Europe’s opportunity to lead, the fiche places significant weight on feasibility, governance and constraints. Important points, certainly, but for a country that wants to lead in biotech by 2040, we expected stronger follow‑through from ambition to action.

That’s why hollandbio remains fully engaged, contributing to Parliamentary consultations, advising policymakers and feeding insights into both Part I and Part II of the act. Our overall goal, and corresponding asks, remains unchanged: an EU Biotech Act that works end-to-end for health, food and industrial biotech. Read our full analysis here.

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Werkbezoek van EIC-president Michiel Scheffers onderstreept belang van samenwerking in het bloeiende biotech ecosysteem

Afgelopen vrijdag bracht Michiel Scheffers, president van het European Innovation Council (EIC)-board, op uitnodiging van de gemeente Leiden een werkbezoek aan het Leiden Bio Science Park, en hollandbio’s Wieteke was erbij. Het EIC is namelijk een van de grootste deep tech-investeerders in Europa. Met een uitgekiende mix aan financieringsinstrumenten, van vroege fase tot scale-up, is het EIC voor hollandbio een lichtend voorbeeld om innovaties voor transities in energie, voedsel, materialen en gezondheid te realiseren. Goed nieuws dan ook dat het budget fors wordt opgehoogd naar € 34 miljard en nieuwe initiatieven met volop ruimte voor biotech, zoals STEP Scale-up, ruim baan krijgen.

Scheffers werd met open armen ontvangen door het bloeiende biotech-ecosysteem in Leiden. De gezamenlijke aanwezigheid was ook direct de belangrijkste boodschap: een doorslaand succes als het Leiden Bio Science Park kan alleen ontstaan wanneer alle neuzen dezelfde kant op staan. Het EIC, dat door passende financieringssamenwerking mede mogelijk wordt gemaakt, is daarbij een onmisbare schakel voor maatschappelijke én economische impact. Nederlandse ondernemers zijn ondanks de zeer geringe slagingskans buitengewoon succesvol in het verzilveren van EIC-financiering in Europa. Wat hollandbio betreft, speelt het EIC nu al een sleutelrol in het biotech-ecosysteem, die bovendien als blauwdruk kan fungeren voor het vormgeven en optimaliseren van nationale financieringsinstrumenten.  

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Hollandbio verwelkomt Syngenta Nederland

Hollandbio verbindt, vertegenwoordigt en ondersteunt de Nederlandse life sciences sector. We zijn supertrots dat we al meer dan 270 bedrijven vertegenwoordigen: van start-ups, midden- en kleinbedrijven tot grote bedrijven, actief in gezondheid, voeding of biobased economy. Vandaag verwelkomen we ons nieuwste lid, Syngenta Nederland, een wereldwijde leider in landbouwinnovatie en groentezaadveredeling. Syngenta Nederland stelt zich graag aan jullie voor:

Als onderdeel van Syngenta Group, één van ‘s werelds toonaangevende agrarische bedrijven met meer dan 53.000 medewerkers in ruim 100 landen, speelt Syngenta een cruciale rol in de ontwikkeling van duurzame oplossingen voor de voedselproductie. Syngenta is actief op twee hoofdgebieden: gewasbescherming en zaadveredeling. Met onze innovatieve gewasbeschermingsmiddelen helpen we telers wereldwijd hun gewassen te beschermen tegen ziekten, plagen en onkruiden, waarbij biologische gewasbescherming een belangrijke pijler is. Daarnaast bieden we digitale precisielandbouwtools die telers ondersteunen bij hun teelt. Ook zijn we een belangrijke speler in de zaadveredeling, waar we ons richten op de ontwikkeling van hoogwaardige rassen voor de professionele teler.

In Nederland vind je één van de grootste groentezaadveredelingsvestigingen, al bijna 160 jaar stevig geworteld in Enkhuizen, het hart van ‘Seed Valley’. Deze regio in Noord-Holland staat wereldwijd bekend als hét centrum van zaadveredeling en zaadinnovatie. Onze groentezaadveredeling combineert traditionele veredelingstechnieken met geavanceerde biotechnologie en data-analyse. Onze veredelingsprogramma’s richten zich op rassen die niet alleen een hogere opbrengst leveren, maar ook beter bestand zijn tegen ziekten, klimaatverandering en andere uitdagingen. Denk aan tomaten met verbeterde houdbaarheid, paprika’s met verhoogde weerstand tegen ziekten, of komkommers die minder water nodig hebben.

Jan Willem Griep, algemeen directeur van Syngenta Nederland: “Het lidmaatschap van hollandbio past perfect bij onze missie om innovatie en samenwerking centraal te stellen. De Nederlandse life sciences sector staat wereldwijd bekend om haar expertise en ondernemerschap. Als nieuw lid kunnen we kennis delen, leren van elkaar en samenwerken aan innovaties die ertoe doen. Ons werk is daar een mooi voorbeeld van: met wetenschap en innovatie dragen we bij aan een veerkrachtige en duurzame voedselproductie.”

Voor meer informatie over gewasbescherming kunt u terecht bij Ronald Jager (ronald.jager@syngenta.com) en voor vragen over groentezaadveredeling bij Janneke van der Hart (janneke.van_der_hart@syngenta.com)

Bron: Syngenta Nederland
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Hollandbio welcomes Akin Solutions as new member

Hollandbio connects, represents, and supports the Dutch life science sector. We are very proud to represent over 270 companies: from start-ups, small and medium-sized companies, to large companies, active in health, food, or the biobased economy. Today, we are happy to introduce Akin Solutions – a Dutch biotech company that turns rubber waste into high-quality recycled material. Their enzyme-powered biorefinery makes it possible to recycle rubber to a virgin-like quality while also producing valuable coproducts. This enables reuse in demanding applications such as tires and industrial products instead of being downcycled.

Rubber is essential to modern life, from mobility to medical devices, but its supply chain is under pressure. Natural rubber drives deforestation and supply risks, while synthetic rubber relies on fossil resources and has a high carbon footprint. At the same time, most end-of-life rubber cannot be recycled into materials suitable for high-performance use.

Akin Solutions addresses this challenge by refining devulcanized rubber through targeted processing and separation to restore performance and consistency without degradation. Their biorefinery platform is designed to integrate into existing recycling facilities, making deployment easier. Their molecular imaging services help verify how the resulting material performs in real-world products.

Akin Solutions seeks partnerships with recyclers and manufacturers to advance their technology and demonstrate industrial-scale performance. By joining HollandBio, they aim to stay informed on political developments, address obstacles, and further integrate into the Dutch biotech ecosystem for materials development.

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Hollandbio verwelkomt Violet als nieuwe stagiaire

Sinds deze week versterkt Violet van der Eijk het team van hollandbio als stagiaire. Ze zal voor vijf maanden stagelopen als onderdeel van haar master Biomedical Sciences aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. Binnen deze master volgt ze de specialisaties Neurobiologie en Science in Society. Violet heeft al van jongs af aan interesse in de etiologie, pathologie en behandeling van aandoeningen, wat haar motiveerde om de bachelor Biomedische Wetenschappen te volgen. Tijdens haar master kreeg ze de mogelijkheid om haar kennis in wetenschap en onderzoek te combineren met beleidsvorming en organisatieprocessen. Bij hollandbio krijgt Violet de kans om deze kennis verder uit te breiden, in de praktijk toe te passen en actief bij te dragen aan de sector. Haar stageonderzoek zoomt in op een vraagstuk dat bepalend is voor de toekomst van gezondheid op maat: hoe regelgeving en vergoeding de ontwikkeling van gepersonaliseerde medicijnen kunnen maken of breken.

Violet onderzoekt de komende tijd hoe nationale en internationale regelgeving en vergoedingen de opkomst van gepersonaliseerde medicijnen beïnvloeden. Hoe doet Nederland dit ten opzichte van andere landen? En hoe ervaren stakeholders, zoals academische ontwikkelaars, mkb’ers en grote farmaceutische bedrijven, deze vereisten in de praktijk? Violet brengt in kaart hoe het Nederlandse framework is ingericht en in hoeverre het huidige systeem de ontwikkeling en klinische toepassing van gepersonaliseerde medicijnen faciliteert. Met inzicht in de kansen en knelpunten kan hollandbio zich nog sterker inzetten voor verbeteringen in de regelgeving en vergoeding van deze medicijnen.

Violet: “Ik kijk ernaar uit om mij verder te verdiepen in zowel de nationale als internationale biotechsector en tijdens mijn stage mijn interesse in gepersonaliseerde medicijnen en regelgeving toe te passen. Daarnaast verheug ik me erop om het hollandbio-team te leren kennen en van hun kennis en ervaring te leren.” Hollandbio heet Violet van harte welkom en wenst haar succes!

Wil je kennismaken of meedenken? Violet is te bereiken via violet.vandereijk@hollandbio.nl of LinkedIn.

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Hollandbio welcomes MimeCure as new member

Hollandbio connects, represents and supports the Dutch life sciences & biotech sector. We are proud to represent a growing community of innovative companies, ranging from start-ups and scale-ups to established industry players. Today, we are pleased to welcome our newest member: MimeCure.

MimeCure is a Dutch biotech company developing a first-in-class regenerative therapy for chronic and progressive lung diseases, with an initial focus on idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The company is based in the Netherlands and builds on academic research originating from the University of Groningen.

The company’s lead program, MC002, is based on an active fragment of the endogenous protein osteoglycin. Rather than targeting inflammation or fibrosis alone, MimeCure’s approach aims to restore the lung’s intrinsic regenerative capacity by promoting lung tissue repair. This regenerative mechanism differentiates MC002 from current standard-of-care therapies, which primarily slow disease progression without addressing the underlying loss of functional lung tissue.

MC002 is being developed as an inhaled therapy, allowing direct delivery to the lung while limiting systemic exposure. MimeCure combines expertise in pulmonary biology, regenerative pharmacology, and inhalation formulation to advance MC002 toward early clinical development. The company is currently progressing preclinical efficacy, mechanism-of-action studies, and formulation development to support first-in-human clinical trials.

MimeCure’s long-term vision is to contribute to a new generation of regenerative medicines for lung disease, addressing unmet medical needs in indications where current treatment options remain limited. The company actively collaborates with academic partners, clinical experts, and industry stakeholders to accelerate translation from fundamental biology to patient benefit.

By joining Hollandbio, MimeCure aims to connect with the broader Dutch life sciences ecosystem, exchange expertise, and contribute to the collective effort to strengthen innovation in biotechnology and regenerative medicine.

For more information, visit www.mimecure.com.

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