Session Speaker "Capturing Economic Value from Innovative Plant Technologies"

Elspeth MacRae is the Executive in charge of Scion’s Bioproduct Development science area which includes all Scion’s wood and fibre processing activities as well as biorefinery, biodiscovery and bioplastic activities.  In this role she sits on the Board of the Biopolymer Network Ltd, a company developing and commercialising biopolymer products.  In her previous job at Plant and Food Research (HortResearch) she was involved in development and commercialisation of several kiwifruit related technologies and is an inventor on several patents, as well as author on over 100 publications in international journals. In her last role there she led the Industrial Biotechnology group.

In addition, carries out Futurewatch activities for MoRST - an initiative that identifies emerging science trends and innovations that will benefit New Zealand. Membership of recent delegations; the EU Fork to Farm visit in 2005 and the minister’s visit to the EU in 2007 complements these activities.  She carried out an Industrial Biotechnology futures project for the OECD Bioeconomy to 2030 programme which was released in May 2009.  She is New Zealand’s representative on the EU Plant Sciences organisation’s overarching committee, and sits on a Marsden Fund panel.