Lonza AG (Basel, Switzlerand) announced a CHF 85 million (~$93 million USD) investment in its Capsules and Health Ingredients (CHI) Division, a dosage-form delivery partner to the biopharma and health nutrition industry. The investment will enable the company to expand its overall production capacity of capsules within CHI’s Capsugel portfolio by 30 billion capsules annually while maintaining the high-quality standards with Lonza’s Sigma Series. The new expansion involves eight global Lonza sites. Production capacity will be increased across Lonza’s global manufacturing and supply chain network to help further strengthen the company’s position as a leading global supplier of capsules. The investment will allow a 15% increase in CHI’s current capsule production capacity.
This latest commitment follows on from an initial investment initiated in 2019 to increase CHI’s capacity by 10 billion capsules. The addition of manufacturing capacity for a further 30 billion capsules will address the high growth across CHI’s gelatin, vegetarian, and specialty polymers portfolio as well as the liquid-filled hard capsules sold under the Licaps brand. This investment will be made over two fiscal years, 2020 and 2021, across eight global Lonza manufacturing sites, including Bornem (BE), Colmar (FR), Greenwood (USA), Haryana (IN), Jakarta (ID), Puebla (MX), Sagamihara (JP), and Suzhou, (CN).
The current industry trends are leading to an increased demand for capsules both in the pharmaceutical and nutritional supplements markets. Patients are seeking preventative treatments, while consumers want to support healthier lifestyles. Expanding the manufacturing capacity of Lonza’s entire network will allow ample supply both in the near- and long-term. Additionally, the expansion underlines the strategic position of capsules within the broader nutrition industry and will also support production as CHI also introduces new dosage technologies such as Lipid Multi Particulates (LMP) technologies and several new time-release functional capsule solutions.
Claude Dartiguelongue, President Capsules & Health Ingredients, Lonza, said: “We continue to see strong demand for our products across all markets, as consumers and patients alike take a more active interest in their health. Therefore, we felt it is critical that we make this commitment to expand the manufacturing capacity of our network, not only addressing supply needs in the near term but also supply availability over the long term.”
Stef Vanquickenborne, Head of Capsules & Health Ingredients Research and Development, Lonza: “Dosage form technologies have evolved rapidly over the past ten years. As the leader in the industry, we are committed to innovation and helping our customers successfully deliver next-generation drugs and nutritional supplements.”