Home to a score of pioneering biopharma players, Denmark has recognized its life sciences industry as a cornerstone of the economy. After forming a public-private partnership forum in 2021, the Danish Life Sciences Council (DLSC), the government laid out an ambitious strategy for the sector. The DLSC has now taken another step towards advancing the life sciences, submitting a series of industry-specific recommendations to the European Commission (EC).
Denmark’s 2030 Life Science Vision
“Denmark must be a leading life science nation in Europe for the benefit of patients, the Danish healthcare system, and the Danish economy.” This is the vision guiding the new “Strategy for Life Science Towards 2030” released by the Danish government at the end of last year. But under social democrat Mette Frederiksen, the government’s focus on building the industry is not a new priority.
In 2021 as part of its previous industry strategy it formed the Danish Life Science Council (DLSC), a unique public-private partnership forum that groups pharma companies from Denmark and abroad as well as healthcare system representatives, research institutions, and patient associations. The latest plan, aiming to realise the industry’s potential towards 2030, was in fact developed in collaboration with the DLSC along with other industry stakeholders.
In the Scandinavian nation’s latest move to promote the sector, the DLSC has come out with life science industry recommendations for the European Commission as it prepares the European Life Sciences Strategy set to be launched later this year.
A Legacy of Innovation
Denmark may be one of Europe’s smaller nations, yet it has no shortage of home-grown biopharma success stories. The weight loss champion Novo Nordisk, the brain health expert Lundbeck and the dermatology-centred Leo Pharma are just a few of the local innovators that have shaped Denmark’s life sciences industry.
With 1660 companies in 2020, a number that grew by 25 percent between 2008 and 2020, the sector has become a driving economic force for the country. A major domestic employer that saw its headcount grow by 43 percent between 2010 and 2021, the life sciences in Denmark employ some 63,000 full-time staff. The industry’s turnover in 2020 was DKK 284 billion, amounting to about 6.8 percent of the entire Danish economy’s turnover.
While Denmark’s domestic market may not be one of the world’s largest, the nation’s life sciences industry has also become an export powerhouse, accounting for some DKK 174 billion in exports 2023 (EUR 23 billion), almost 20 percent of Denmark’s total exports.
When it comes to clinical research, with its highly-skilled workforce, excellent hospitals and research institutes and single entry point programme, Trial Nation, Denmark has become the EU country that conducts the most clinical trials per million inhabitants.
However, despite these glowing statistics, like most European nations with significant biopharma industries, Denmark is facing increasingly strong global competition as well as current geopolitical tensions. In light of this, the new Life Sciences Strategy Towards 2030 set out to create an attractive framework that will continue to draw investments to Denmark.
Laying the Tracks for Sustained Momentum
“It’s crucial that we give the life science industry the best conditions to realise its huge billion-dollar potential,” said the minister of Economic and Business Affairs Morten Bødskov at the launch of the new strategy. One of the key objectives of the plan is to enlarge the Danish life sciences sector’s growth and double exports to DKK 350 billion (EUR 46 billion) by 2030.
But how does the new plan aim to accomplish this? Namely with an envelope of DKK 400 million (EUR 53 million) that will lead up through 2027 to “future-proof” the Danish life science sector. The strategy also outlines priority areas, including supporting companies and easing the weight of R&D, upping digitalisation efforts, and attracting foreign investment.
Among the financial incentives put forward, many of which were underway before the actual launch of the strategy and are expected to take effect between 2026 and 2027, are measures destined to make R&D costs less onerous for life sciences companies such as a higher deduction for losses and a rise in tax credits on R&D investments.
Other strategy proposals focused on making investing in Denmark more attractive, such as the deferral of tax on future payments and a streamlined regulatory process for companies looking to set up or expand manufacturing facilities, are yet to be addressed through legislative proposals. However, industry stakeholders appear to see the new strategy and its clarity as favourable.
“The Danish strategy is very action-oriented with clear objectives on how the sector can further develop and grow, including doubling exports by 2030. At Novo Nordisk, we continue to make significant investments in both research and production in Denmark, and we naturally view the strong political commitment to the pharmaceutical sector positively,” said Novo Nordisk executive Kathrine Bengaard Poulsen.
From National Leader to European Role Model
Beyond its borders, Denmark is also pushing for a commitment from the EU in the upcoming European Life Sciences Strategy, intended to boost European competitiveness. In a report published last month, the DLSC urged for policies that would reinforce Europe’s competitive edge. “Europe needs to step up its game,” said the Danish minister for Higher Education and Science, Christina Egelund in response to the report’s findings.
Some of the measures the DLSC proposes are a framework for the private capital market through market-driven initiatives and stronger collaborations with private investors; the creation and investment in a European innovation hubs, like the one being created in Copenhagen; streamlining regulatory processes, and the creation of a European Life Science Council, like the one in Denmark.
