Bio tech industry job growth in South Dakota is out pacing the nation. Over the recession, national bioscience employment decreased .04 percent. In South Dakota over that same period bio tech jobs grew by 6.6 percent. South Dakota Bio Tech Industry Association Executive Director Joni Johnson says the state’s higher education system has provided the needed workers and the state’s business environment has helped the growth.
Johnson says other states can learn from South Dakota’s biotech success.
Johnson says the fastest growing part of the state’s biotech industry is in the agricultural feedstock and chemicals area.
The other biotech areas that have seen job growth in South Dakota include bioscience related distribution and medical devices and equipment.