Alltracel has conditionally agreed to buy the share capital of the privately-owned product development company that supplies oral care products to branded and private label sectors in Europe, the US and Asia for €8 million.
The deal will help the Irish company develop its proprietary m.doc technology for use in different applications including foods. Earlier this year Alltracel signed a deal with Scottish sausage casings maker Devro to develop new cholesterol-lowering foods based on the patented cellulose technology.
The technology has already been used in commercially available woundcare products, as it has been found form a film over cuts, stopping bleeding rapidly. But the cellulose particles have also been shown to lower LDL cholesterol levels in animal studies.
The new deal gives Alltracel rigths to a number of oral care patents as well as a portfolio of dissolvable thin film products that can be used as carriers for flavours and other active ingredients like vitamins. The range is produced by a majority-owned venture with Devro, called Biofilm.
Biofilm's original test facility, located in Devro's Moodiesburn plant, has recently been upgraded to a full pilot production unit, capable of supplying commercial volumes of products as the business develops.
Using edible film strips to deliver nutrients and active plant ingredients is gaining interest from the nutritional products industry and they are set to be the source of a number of new launches in 2005.
Alltracel also gains access to manufacturing and packaging facilities in Shenzhen, China, via a joint venture held between Devro and Westone, which generated €11.5 million for the year to 30 September.
Alltracel CEO Tony Richardson said: "We believe that the combination of Alltracel and Westone will give a solid platform for expanding the m.doc brand, and an enhanced capability to bring new products to market in the woundcare, oral care and cholesterol management markets."