Bioresource Collection and Research Centre (BCRC), originally named the Culture Collection and Research Centre (CCRC) at FIRDI, was launched in 1982. The centre was renamed in 2001, as the appeal from OECD and the matter of fact that CCRC had already expended from its original field of research on microbiological resource to cell and gene resource.
The BCRC is mainly funded by the Technology Development Program (TDP) of the Department of Industrial Technology (DoIT), the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA). Currently, the BCRC is the bioresource collection centre appointed by MOEA for industrial purposes, and at the same time, is the only institute appointed by the government for the patented microbial materials deposit. The BCRC not only becomes genetic resource bank of the Council of Agriculture for the microbial cultures with agricultural importance, but also being the core member of the cell bank of the National Health Research Institutes.
The function and research aims of the BCRC are to:
- Collect, preserve, and provide the genetic biodiversity resources and information;
- store and supply of patent related biological organisms and genetic resources;
- authenticate and identify the biological and genetic resources;
- research, develop and apply the biological and genetic resources; and
- provide industrial related technical or information service.
Although the establishment of BCRC was relatively late compare to other similar organizations in the world, it has already built up its solid reputation and grown into a sizeable bioresource collection centre internationally, with certification of quality management, testing laboratory and reference material producer system such as ISO 9001, ISO 17025, and ISO 17034.
History of BCRC
