BEND, Ore. - TelAve -- The Oregon Life Science Competitiveness Task Force, convened by Oregon Life Sciences (OLS) and the Oregon Business Council, met in Bend on October 14, followed by a panel of Central Oregon life sciences leaders and a meeting of the Biotech Caucus.

Bend life sciences companies were unanimous in their support for a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) serving Central Oregon. An FTZ is treated as outside U.S. Customs territory, so companies can store, process, or assemble imported materials without paying duties until the goods enter the U.S. market.

Bend is a global center for pharmaceutical spray drying, which turns drug formulations into stable powders. Central Oregon has no FTZ of its own, and sites more than 60 miles or 90 minutes from the Port of Portland need a waiver to use the Port's zone. Panelists said imported materials can sit in customs in Seattle or San Francisco for months, and some prospective clients have gone elsewhere as a result.

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"A new FTZ would enable all of our companies to capture a much bigger portion of the U.S. drug product manufacturing industry," said one panelist.

Panelists also described air permitting as slow and unpredictable, with some standards written for auto shops rather than pharmaceutical plants. For one recent 25,000-square-foot facility, permitting took roughly half the project timeline.

On workforce, companies still recruit heavily from outside the region despite Bend's strong talent pool. Panelists said expansion depends on more operators and technicians trained in Good Manufacturing Practice and quality systems, and pointed to OSU-Cascades and apprenticeship models as part of the answer.

"Behind every number in this framework is a person: a technician, a scientist, a patient. Oregon has never lacked talent or ideas. What we've lacked is a shared strategy and the discipline to choose. Let's keep asking what will be different for Oregonians ten years from now because of the choices we make together," said Dr. Ndeye Makalou, Interim President of Oregon Life Sciences.

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The Task Force will reconvene in Corvallis on November 19 and present its recommendations on December 7, 2026, ahead of the 2027 legislative session.

About Oregon Life Sciences
Oregon Life Sciences is the state's trade association and champion for the life sciences industry. With members across biotech, medical devices, diagnostics, digital health, biomanufacturing, and supporting services, Oregon Life Sciences works to advance research, foster collaboration, strengthen the workforce, and grow Oregon's innovation economy. Learn more at www.oregonlifesciences.org.