A host of top US delegates, including the Lieutenant Governor of the State of Illinois, Pat Quinn, begin a three-day business networking visit on Monday next, June 24.

The Illinois region presents very significant market opportunities for Cork companies, with the US Mid-West home to the third largest concentration of bio-tech industries in America.

The purpose of the visit, which has been organised by Cork County Council, is to position Cork as a centre of bio-technology for key decision makers in Illinois and to facilitate continued investment in the Cork region.

The delegation will spend three days visiting UCC, CIT and other centres of research and educational excellence in the region. During the course of the visit, the delegation will meet with and hear presentations from representatives of the life sciences and food industries including Carbery, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Kerry Group and Glanbia. A Sister River Agreement is also due to be signed by the Lieutenant Governor and the Mayor of Cork County which will twin the Illinois River and the River Lee.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Martin Riordan, County Manager said, "The primary purpose of this mission is to lay the framework for greater bilateral trade and investment opportunities between the two cities. We believe that now is the perfect time for Cork to showcase the developments made in the county in the biosciences over the past number of years. Our visitors from Illinois bring with them key insights for the progression of this area and we hope to learn from their experiences during the visit".

Over the past number of years, Ireland has attracted the key players in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Cork is home to a number of these global names such as Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, Janssen, Centocor, Eli Lilly, GE Healthcare, Gilead (formerly Altana Pharma), Schering-Plough (Brinny), among others.

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