Synthetic biology: A game changer for economic sustainability, security and resilience

With recent leaps in the understanding of how DNA coding shapes the nature and function of living systems, bioengineers can unlock new possibilities. For instance, they can harness living systems to produce chemicals and advanced materials, modify organisms to act as healthcare treatments or support food production, and wield new tools combining biological systems with digital and automated technologies.

To realise this promise, OECD convened 66 experts from six continents to identify areas where synthetic biology may have transformative impacts. This Global Forum on Technology expert focus group came together during 2023 and 2024 to identify key ways in which synthetic biology could transform society. From human health to food security, and from the circular economy to sustainable production, synthetic biology — combined with scaling technologies such as decentralised biomanufacturing — has the potential to become as impactful as the digital revolution.

Synthetic biology is already transforming the way we treat diseases. Personalised gene and cell therapies, once experimental, are now offering hope to patients with rare genetic disorders: a one-off treatment against sickle cell disease has been approved in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and the European Union after showing efficacy rates of over 90%. In cancer, companies are already engineering bacteria to act as living treatments that target tumours with enhanced safety and precision. To improve accessibility, mobile drug labs powered by decentralised biomanufacturing could locally produce vaccines and therapeutics to improve response speed during health emergencies. Scaling and affordability of these solutions remain key bottlenecks to be tackled.

With growing global populations and environmental changes threatening food supplies, synthetic biology could contribute to mitigation efforts. Researchers are engineering crops that not only grow in harsh conditions but also have enhanced nutritional value — for example, “golden rice” is enriched to biosynthesize beta-carotene (a precursor to vitamin A) to combat malnutrition. Companies are also using cellular agriculture to produce synthetic foods like lab-grown meat, which do not need livestock farming and could reduce land and water use while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Synthetic biology could reinforce the shift towards greener, less wasteful circular economies. Companies are harnessing engineered microbes as cellular machines to produce bio-based chemicals of interest. For example, plastics which normally take centuries to break down are being replaced by biodegradable materials. Fashion brands are beginning to use lab-grown leather and bio-based dyes that do not require harmful chemicals and thus reduce the environmental footprint of clothing production. Whilst these technologies are beginning to prove commercially viable, they are not yet always cost competitive against existing manufacturing methods.

Whilst synthetic biology promises a range of solutions, there is a need for ethical and societal reflection on who will be most impacted and how such developments will align with shared values. For example, workers in incumbent industries shifting towards biomanufacturing will likely need job replacement programs, and patients should be able to afford live-saving synthetic biology-enabled treatments. Anticipating future implications — articulating the potential benefits, harms, and unknowns — will allow for robust policy choices to maximise the benefits of innovations enabled by synthetic biology and mitigate potential harms. Such articulation can benefit from multi-stakeholder dialogues between communities and countries.

Governments and international organisations like the OECD have a role to play in creating policy environments that promote innovation in a way that is safe, secure, sustainable and societally relevant. Many countries around the world are stepping up their efforts to unlock the potential of the bioeconomy, with over 50 governments establishing national strategies or related initiatives. These set priorities for advancing the sector, tackling key challenges such as workforce development, value chain expansion, and investment. Examples include the European Union’s Building the Future with Nature: Boosting Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing in the EU (2024), Japan’s update to its National Bioeconomy Strategy (2024), and the United Kingdom’s National Vision for Engineering Biology (2023).

The experts engaged identified five key areas where policy can make a difference:

• Innovation ecosystems must be strengthened and made resilient, with sufficient funding and infrastructure to scale promising technologies.
• A skilled workforce must be trained that can power the bioeconomy – from PhDs in the lab to those operating biomanufacturing centres.
• Equitable access to the technology and its benefits is critical and could be achieved by empowering economic development and capacity building.
• Biosecurity and biosafety hinges on fostering a culture of responsibility across all research stages and stakeholders.
• Anticipatory governance calls for engaging with society, driving forward innovation that meets desired goals.

A new OECD report identifies key action areas (shown in the infographic above) that will allow policymakers to shape policies to harness the promise of synthetic biology to build a strong, responsible and sustainable bioeconomy. In addition, the OECD is exploring ways to support synthetic biology’s role in driving forward the bioeconomy, such as developing technology assessments, evidence-based standards and indicators. As a knowledge hub and forum for multi-stakeholder discussions, it can create a space for sharing best practices and promoting global collaboration in shaping the future of synthetic biology.

An important next step will be the development of an OECD Recommendation on Responsible Innovation in Synthetic Biology that will aim to empower actors across the ecosystem to drive forward impactful innovation, mitigating against potential risks and consistent with shared values.

Read the full OECD report: Synthetic biology in focus: Policy issues and opportunities in engineering life