Published on: Friday, September 02, 2011

By: Daryl Buchanan

Did you know a biotech company that originated in the Netherlands is setting down roots and developing a United States office right in Rockville? Keygene is a small but prospering company that is currently utilizing the Rockville Innovation Center business incubator to grow into a successful company within America.

Keygene is based in Wageningen, the Netherlands. It was founded in 1989 by a group of Dutch seed companies. The goal then and still is to improve vegetable and crop breeding efforts through genetic research programs. Keygene entered the Rockville business incubator in 2008 and currently has a small staff of 11 people. Keygene chose to start their American branch in Rockville for a variety of reasons.

“We didn’t want to start as small new company in America alone. We wanted to start some place with good connections and an established network we can grow and develop with. Before settling on Rockville we looked at other biotechnology clusters. Rockville was the best choice because of the I270 corridor, with several biotech companies in place and Rockville offered close proximity to the National Institutes of Health, USDA, Johns Hopkins, and the Food and Drug Administration,” said Dr. An Michiels, CEO of Keygene’s Rockville office.

Keygene is a part of what they call a “green gene revolution” within the field of life science, specifically with breeding or crossing crops like lettuce, rice, corn, and tomatoes. Keygene specializes in genetic and genomic research for food and seed companies to utilize in crop breeding or crossing. Plant breeding is a processwhere closely or distantly related plants are interbred to produce new crop varieties with desirable properties such as disease resistance, high yield, or better taste.

It is complex work but here’s one way to look at it. For example disease resistant tomato type A can be crossed with a high yielding but disease susceptible type B tomato. The goal of crossing these two types of tomatoes would be to create a disease resistant tomato that maintains its high yield characteristics. The new tomato would ideally have the positive properties of both types of tomato. The steps however, don’t end there as more testing and crossing is required to ensure the disease resistant and high yielding tomato has been reached.

Often genetically altered food raises red flags for some. It is very important to note that Keygene uses natural variations in their work. The crops that are developed from their research create healthier, tastier, and heartier foods. The new variation of tomato mentioned above would be created using traditional breeding approaches. It is all natural and the crossing is done with wild plants currently found in the environment. Another benefit from Keygene’s research is the potential for reduced use of costly and harmful pesticides on crops. A disease resistant crop would no longer need intensive pesticide spraying.

Keygene is just one of many companies currently taking advantage of the benefits of the Rockville Innovation Center. “The Rockville Innovation center has given us an excellent opportunity to learn how to run a business in America. There are many differences between here and the Netherlands. They have made the transition smooth and the whole Rockville REDI and Montgomery County Business network is a big help. The area is very nice in that there is an established network and community,” said Dr. Michiels. Keygene and other companies found an ideal location in Rockville, seemingly one that cannot be beat. Not only is it good for American businesses it is good for international businesses looking to gain a foothold in America.

It is too early to tell when Keygene will be ready to leave the incubator, once Keygene is ready to move into their own office space they plan to stay in the area. “We do plan to stay in the Montgomery County. Many of our employees are already in the area and this is the ideal location for us. The closer we stay the better”, said Dr. Michiels. When they do leave Keygene will be creating a lot of new jobs within Montgomery County. This growing company has a bright and successful future in a field that can positively impact society. It will be a company to keep an eye on in the near future.