Weekly Roundup: Catalent acquires Bristol-Myers Squibb’s production site, KD Pharma refinances US$166m debt facilities

10 Jan 2020 --- In nutrition news this week, Catalent completed the purchase of Biologics Fill-Finish and Oral Solid Dose Facility, while KD Pharma rearranged and expanded its debt facilities, raising €150 million (US$166 million) in total financing. Meanwhile, a new study concluded that children who drank whole milk have lower risk of being overweight or obese. In the weight loss space, SlimFast announced 21 new product additions to its best-selling Keto line.

In brief: Business news
Global provider of advanced delivery technologies and solutions for consumer health products Catalent, has completed the purchase of Bristol-Myers Squibb’s biologics, sterile and oral solid dose product manufacturing and packaging facility in Anagni, Italy. The 28,000 square-meter facility has a demonstrated track record in technical transfers and successful commercial product launches. The plant offers capabilities in aseptic liquid and powder filling for biologics and sterile products across multiple vial sizes and comprehensive primary and secondary packaging solutions, including serialization, to support product launches for oral solids, sterile and biologics products. Catalent also announced its plans to make further investments in the site’s growth. “The Anagni facility supplements our European commercial supply capabilities and will integrate well with our existing global early development and clinical supply sites to smooth the transition from development to commercial supply,” notes Alessandro Maselli, Catalent’s President and CEO.

Dr. Jonathon Maguire, lead author of the review and a Pediatrician at St. Michael's Hospital says that the majority of children North America consume cow's milk on a daily basis and it is a major contributor of dietary fatThe KD Pharma Group has rearranged and expanded its debt facilities, raising €150 million in total financing through the plants. The solution includes a term loan to refinance existing debt, a capex facility for production expansion, as well as a revolving credit facility and is fully underwritten by Deutsche Bank Direct Lending Europe. The refinancing is a component of the company’s growth strategy, which has also included the recent acquisition of a new pharmaceutical plant in Seal Sands, UK.

In brief: Research and study
A systematic review and meta-analysis led by St. Michael’s Hospital of Unity Health Toronto found that children who drank whole milk had 40 percent lower odds of being overweight or obese compared with children who consumed reduced-fat milk. The research, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, analyzed 28 studies from seven countries that explored the relationship between children drinking cow’s milk and the risk of being overweight or obese. None of the studies, which involved a total almost 21,000 children between the ages of one and 18 years old, showed that kids who drank reduced-fat milk had a lower risk of being overweight or obese. Eighteen of the 28 studies suggested children who drank whole milk were less likely to be overweight or obese. The findings challenge Canadian and international guidelines that recommend children consume reduced-fat cow's milk instead of whole milk starting at age two to reduce the risk of obesity.

In brief: Launches and releases
Weight loss brand SlimFast has announced new product additions to its Keto line. The products bolster the 2020 SlimFast Keto lineup to 21 total products including ready-to-drink meal replacement shakes and bars, snacks and shake mixes delivering convenience and ease to consumers following the Keto diet. The meal replacement shakes and bars, along with the Fat Bomb snacks and other products in the best-selling SlimFast Keto line are formulated on the principles of ketogenic nutrition: high-fat, low-carbohydrate and moderate-protein. This shifts the body's primary fuel source from carbohydrates to fat.

SlimFast announced 21 new product additions to its best-selling Keto lineNutrition21 has announced that its clinically substantiated ingredient Nitrosigine, is now featured in Alani Nu’s new release, Pump - Stim Free. As a complement to their extremely successful Pump product, Pump - Stim Free promises the same quality and taste that Alani Nu’s following counts on, but without stimulants. Pump - Stim Free is a pre-workout supplement packed with premium ingredients and formulated to deliver increased pumps, boost and mental focus. Nitrosigine is a patented complex of bonded arginine silicate stabilized with inositol that is scientifically engineered to significantly boost nitric oxide levels, a key factor in increasing blood flow. Studies have shown that Nitrosigine clinically enhances levels of both arginine and nitric oxide and is a more bioavailable form of arginine.

In brief: Appointments and assignments
Chr. Hansen and Lonza’s 50/50 joint venture for Live Biotherapeutic Products (LBP), Bacthera, has appointed Lukas Schüpbach as CEO as of February 1, 2020. Schüpbach comes from a position as global head of Strategy and Operations at Emavant Solutions and was also Co-Founder of Innojection. He has previously held senior leadership positions at Syngenta and Novartis.

The Natural Products Association (NPA), the US’s largest non-profit organization dedicated to the natural products industry, has announced that former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official Sibyl Swift, Ph.D. will be the new Senior Vice President for Scientific and Regulatory Affairs for the association. The hire comes as NPA expands its international presence as a Codex Alimentarius NGO observer and accelerates its advocacy efforts on a host of public policy priorities including CBD regulation, New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) enforcement, permitting health savings to account holders to use tax-deferred funds for supplement purchases, and the future of Natural Product regulation.

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that Deborah Waterhouse, CEO of global specialist HIV company ViiV Healthcare, will join GSK’s Corporate Executive Team (CET) with immediate effect. ViiV Healthcare is majority-owned by GSK, with Pfizer Inc. and Shionogi Limited as shareholders. Waterhouse joined GSK in 1996 and has worked in a number of commercial leadership roles in Europe, Asia-Pacific and the US. Waterhouse has a strong track record of performance in both specialty and primary care medicines and brings further commercial focus to the CET.

By Kristiana Lalou

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