Galenica announced yesterday that is has acquired UK omega-3 company Equazen for an undisclosed sum. It acquired Potters, a Wigan-based herbal medicine company, in 2003.
Country manager and head export OTC Gian Trepp told NutraIngredients.com that, when seeking to enter the emerging omega-3 market, Gelencia opted for Equazen since it has a high scientific angle, which differentiates it from other available products.
He would not go into detail about marketing plans, but said that countries which have a coastline and a tradition of fish-eating tend to have more affinity with fish oil.
In the coastal north of Germany, for instance, there is stronger acceptance than in south.
Of landlocked markets, Trepp said: "We want to develop these markets as well, but it may take more time."
In the UK, Galenica plans to combine and apply the strengths of Potters and Equazen to each other. While Equazen's is very strong on sales and marketing, Potters' has exceptional expertise in technical and regulatory issues and has an established manufacturing base.
While Galenica has a presence in 80 countries worldwide, the UK is the only market in which it has subsidiaries. Elsewhere its global OTC business is conducted through partners.
Trepp said that the UK OTC market is interesting for a variety of reasons: a more flexible labour market, good economy and solid growth. Moreover, he said it is a liquid market - if a company takes a wrong turn, it can usually find a buyer fairly easily.