Media Coverage : Articles

CEO: 12.9M Package Will Keep His Biotech Co. Here

Boston Herald—Boston, Mass.

Jay Fitzgerald
June 1, 2007

Canton-based Organogenesis will hire 300 new workers in coming years and stay headquartered in Massachusetts, thanks to a multimillion-dollar economic incentive package offered by Gov. Deval Patrick.

The company's chief executive, Geoff MacKay, yesterday said the company had been seriously considering a move to Rhode Island or elsewhere, before deciding on staying put in Massachusetts.

He credited the economic incentive package, which could reach $12.9 million or more, for the decision to remain in Massachusetts—as well as Patrick's personal commitment to bolstering the state's life sciences industry.

"We were at the breaking point where it was time to expand and make a decision," said MacKay.

Organogenesis, the maker of the controversial live-skin replacement product Apligraf, is now searching for a site for a new 250,000-square-foot regenerative medicine lab within 15 miles of its current headquarters in Canton.

The Patrick administration touted the governor's new $1 billion Life Sciences Initiative as a major reason for Organogenesis' decision.

But it's unclear at this point whether any money from that proposal, which has yet to be approved by the Legislature, will help fund the Organogenesis package.

Funds for the economic incentives will come from existing state resources, an administration spokeswoman said. But assuming the Life Sciences Initiative is approved, funds could also come from Patrick's new program, the spokeswoman said.

"I am pleased that Organogenesis has decided to stay and expand upon its success here," said Patrick yesterday.

The company currently has about 250 employees in Canton, with plans to bring its payroll to 300 by the end of this year. The goal in coming years is to double its work force to about 600, said MacKay.

Credit: By Jay Fitzgerald

» Back to Full Coverage