KD Pharma expects to triple revenue in US within the two years with new Nutribiolink partnership

08-Jan-2014 - Last updated on 08-Jan-2014 at 14:42 GMT

Germany’s KD Pharma is targeting strong growth in the US dietary supplements market after finalizing an agreement with Nutribiolink to commercialize its patented high-grade fish oils in the US.

KD Pharma, a developer of the use of super critical technology to extract and purify omega-3 concentrates, is expecting the agreement to allow it to triple its revenue in US within the next two years, the company told NutraIngredients-USA.

The German company has pioneered the use of Super Critical Technology with its dual patented process (kd-pür) for extracting and refining highly purified Omega-3s from fish oil: Super Critical CO2 Fluid Extraction (SFE) and Super Critical Fluid Chromatography (SFC). According to the company, this advanced technology gently extracts Omega-3 fatty acids without applying excessive heat (less than 120°F) and chemical solvents and the oils never come into contact with oxygen.

Peter Lembke, VP of sales and business development at KD Pharma, explained that not only does this ensure the protection from oxidation of the product, but also from contamination from micro-organisms that cannot survive in an oxygen-free atmosphere, as well as removing harmful substances such as contaminants, heavy metals, PCBs, etc.

This patented process is also very selective, allowing higher reproducibility and consistency from batch to batch, and higher selectivity and concentration (up to 99% of EPA and/or DHA), compared to other traditional methods, said the company. “That gives our customers the ability to decrease the delivery size for the same daily dosage, or to increase the dosage in the same soft-gel size, both lowering the manufacturing costs” added Lembke.

Move towards concentrates

According to a report from GOED and Frost & Sullivan, consumers are increasing ‘trading up’ to higher quality omega-3 sources, and fish oil concentrates are in the early to mid-growth phase, with market growth expected to continue on a “high growth trajectory” through the next five years.

KD Pharma recently increased its production capacities to 2,000MT of omega-3 concentrates per year.

Nico Bonne, president of Nutribiolink, a privately-owned American company, said that KD Pharma offers the optimal combination: “Ultra-high omega-3 concentrates, with safe processes and low environmental impact, manufactured in a certified cGMP facility for APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients), the most stringent standard out there.

“We are delighted to partner with KD Pharma and look forward to sharing details with our US customers,” added Bonne.

While market data on the launch of finished products with high grades is not available, Bonne said that, “we see many brands (and mass market brands; Nature's Made, Nature's Bounty...) going into the higher concentrates (as opposed to the 30% crude oil).”

Chris Hachey, director of sales and marketing at KD Pharma, which is a member of GOED, added: “We chose Nutribiolink to represent KD Pharma omega-3 oils in the US not only because of their extensive industry contacts, but also because they have the technical knowledge that is required to promote high grade fish oils.”