Vet supplies group completes £24.5m US acquisition

Northwich vet supplies firm Dechra Pharmaceuticals has acquired a US company for £24.5m in cash.

The board of Dechra said it had completed the deal for Ampharmco (APC) and its associated holding companies, Dragon Fire Holdings and Black Griffin Holdings, together with its manufacturing site based in Fort Worth, Texas.

APC was originally founded in 1999 as a veterinary contract manufacturer specialising in companion animal products (CAP) and subsequently received FDA approval for two veterinary generic products, one of which, Gentamicin-Betamethasone Topical Spray, is currently marketed by Dechra.

The other product, Carprofen Chewable Tablets, is currently marketed by another international animal health company.

APC will also provide Dechra with an FDA-registered facility to manufacture solid dose, liquids, creams and ointments, which will significantly strengthen its manufacturing capabilities for the North American market.

The US business also has a small pipeline of CAP products which will complement Dechra’s existing US product portfolio.

Dechra chief executive, Ian Page, said: “We are pleased to have completed the acquisition of APC which allows us to bring in-house manufacturing for a number of our currently outsourced products in the US market and will, in the longer term, also add to our US portfolio of approved CAP products.”

Dechra is a global specialist veterinary pharmaceuticals and related products business.

Its expertise is in the development, manufacture, and sales and marketing of high quality products exclusively for veterinarians worldwide.

Many of Dechra’s products are focused on key therapeutic categories where it has leading market positions, and many of its products are used to treat medical conditions for which there is no other effective solution or have a clinical or dosing advantage over competitor products.

These novel products are complemented by a range of generics.