Mr. Chair, members of the committee, on behalf of Bioniche Life Sciences, I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.
Bioniche is an innovative biopharmaceutical company based in Belleville, Ontario. Our mandate is to act on innovation and improve the quality of life. We are publicly traded and invest heavily in research and development. Bioniche works hard to successfully commercialize our products for the benefit of our stakeholders and Canada. We currently employ over 200 people in highly skilled scientific jobs, with revenues in excess of $27 million.
I am here to speak to you about E. coli O157:H7, a deadly bacteria that continues to affect Canadians.
Bioniche's commitment to science and innovation has led to the development of a vaccine that is the first of its kind in the world. This vaccine was developed through strategic alliances across Canada and is truly a national success story.
The initial discovery occurred at the University of British Columbia. The Alberta Research Council assisted with the vaccine scale-up. Testing was conducted at the Vaccine and Infectious Diseases Organization at the University of Saskatchewan. Commercialization is being achieved by Bioniche in Ontario, and we are exploring supplementary manufacturing in Prince Edward Island.
Throughout all of this, the Government of Canada has been a strong supporter of the vaccine, providing funding through programs such as the Industrial Technologies Office, the agri-opportunities program, and the scientific research and experimental development program.
Canadians remember all too well the tragic outbreak in Walkerton, Ontario where thousands fell ill, seven people died, and many will never return to full health, all due to this pathogen. At the time, governments at all levels vowed to ensure that tragedies such as Walkerton never happen again.
Cattle are the primary reservoir of this bacteria. This deadly strain of E. coli does not make cattle sick, because these animals are not susceptible to the bacteria's toxin; people, however, are. Each year approximately 100,000 cases of human infection with E. coli O157:H7 occur in North America. This bacteria causes diarrhea in most people; however, in 15% of the cases people will develop a bloody diarrhea, and a further 10% of the cases will lead to kidney failure or death.
Although this innovative vaccine could easily be defined as a public health vaccine because it reduces a public health risk, it's given not to Canadians but instead to cattle. This way it helps to prevent the E. coli strain from entering the environment at the source.
An independent economic report estimates that vaccinating Canada's national cattle herd will result in a two-to-one return on investment, with annual savings of $63 million--$30 million in health care costs, and $33 million in benefits to the agricultural economy.
Canada is currently the only country in the world where regulators have granted cattlemen access to an E. coli O157:H7 vaccine. Given the numerous benefits resulting from vaccinating beef and dairy cows, one might assume that cattlemen will move quickly to use this vaccine. However, it's not that simple.
In late 2007 there was a recall of over 20 million pounds of hamburger in the U.S.A. that was linked back to Canadian beef. The negative publicity was yet another blow to Canada's beef industry, a commodity-based system struggling with increasing input costs and recovering from mad cow disease.
Cattlemen receive no direct benefit for spending money to vaccinate their animals. This bacteria does not make cattle sick. Canadian cattlemen are willing to administer the vaccine, but at this time they cannot incur the expense without receiving an offsetting increase in revenue. For this reason, cattlemen are reluctant to spend money to vaccinate their beef and dairy cows.
A Government of Canada program that encourages the adoption of E. coli O157:H7 vaccine over a period of three years would provide leadership for the agricultural sector, use innovation for the benefit of public health, and position Canada as a global leader in food safety. The end goal of this program would be to vaccinate the national cattle herd by 2010. After three years, the benefits of vaccinating cattle against E. coli O157:H7 are expected to be readily evident and justify continued use.
In summary, this Canadian vaccine is a world first and a shining example of innovation. Widespread adoption of this vaccine will position Canada as a global leader in food safety and provide much-needed assistance to the agricultural sector, particularly the beef industry. It will also preserve consumer confidence in Canadian food safety and benefit public health.
Thank you. I'd be pleased to answer any questions you have.