When DSM Pharmaceutical Products (DPP) merged with Patheon in 2013 it marked the end of DSM’s three year effort to reduce its involvement in the “fragmented” pharmaceutical contracting market. The firm now holds a 49% stake in the combined company.
The merger followed two years after DSM combined its drug anti-infectives business with that of Sinochem in a joint venture.
Since January 2014, DSM’s pharma business has not been reported as part of the firm’s core EBITDA or activities.
More recently, DSM announced its intention to cut 1,100 jobs citing changes to its pharmaceutical business as a motivation for the headcount reduction.
Pharma business
Despite this, DSM still wants pharmaceutical industry customers according to a spokeswoman at an industry tradeshow CPhI in Madrid, Spain where the firm is showcasing its vitamin APIs to drugmakers this week.
She told: “We have full range of vitamins, both water and fat-soluble, all supported by CEPs and manufactured at API GMP certified facilities.”
The pharmaceutical-grade vitamins are being represented by DSM’s nutritional products division which, despite being “separate from the DPP offering” according to the spokeswoman, has drug industry pedigree.
“In DSM Nutritional Products we have the benefit of the heritage from the Roche Vitamin business which we acquired in 2003. This gives us over 70 years of experience of manufacturing vitamins in high quality environment.
She added that: “So our value proposition in DSM Nutritional Products specifically for pharma is strong as a supplier of vitamins.”