OptiBiotix Health signs North America manufacturing deal with Agropur

The AIM-traded firm said the agreement granted Agropur an exclusive license to manufacture, supply and distribute OptiBiotix's ‘SlimBiome’ weight management technology in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

It described Agropur, founded in 1938, as a North American “dairy industry leader” with 8,800 employees and sales of $6.7bn in 2018.

It processed more than 6.2 billion litres of milk per year at its 39 plants across North America, and boasted a portfolio of brands and products including Natrel, OKA, Iögo, BiPRO, Agropur Grand Cheddar, Olympic, Farmers, Island Farms, Québon, ISO Chill and Crino.

SlimBiome, meanwhile, was OptiBiotix’s flagship weight management product, which would be supplied by Agropur's Customs Solutions Group as a specialised functional ingredient.

It could be incorporated into a wide range of applications, including human nutrition comprising of food and beverages, dairy, dietary supplements and sports nutrition, with the exception of extruded product in cereal particulates which is a market segment serviced by Cereal Ingredients.

OptiBiotix said the deal was a “strategic step” to de-risk its supply chain and extend the market reach of SlimBiome, by adding manufacturing in North America.

It said it would extend the commercial opportunity for its patented weight management product into the US weight management market, which was estimated to be worth $72bn in 2019.

The company said partnering with an established player with an extensive reach to companies using high-value functional ingredients into their food applications would allow end users to reduce transport and tariff costs, while shortening lead-times and granting them access to Agropur's expert advice and capabilities to create value.

“We are pleased to announce the signing of a manufacturing and supply agreement with Agropur,” said Dr Fred Narbel, the managing director of OptiBiotix’s prebiotics division.

“We chose Agropur due to their world leading expertise in manufacturing and distributing specialty ingredients like SlimBiome® and their reputation for supplying high quality products to the food industry.

“We believe working with Agropur, and similar partners around the world, provides the best opportunity of increasing our global commercial reach and catering to the growing interest we are seeing in SlimBiome® from partners worldwide.”

Mike Homewood, vice-president of Agropur's Custom Solutions Group, added that the collaboration with OptiBiotix Health was “well-aligned” with his company’s goal to bring innovation to its customers.

“The manufacturing and supply of SlimBiome is a natural fit within our model of solution-focused ingredients for the food, beverage and nutrition industries. We look forward to collaborating with OptiBiotix Health in the North American market.”