Huvepharma: New fermentation plant in Peshtera, Bulgaria

Built in record time of 2 years and requiring € 150 million in investment, the new factory has a total fermentation capacity of 3500m³ , including:

• 21 process fermenters of 160m³ each
• 7 culture and interim fermenters of 20m³

“Fermentation is our core business and we control all stages of the production of APIs (Active pharmaceutical ingredients) and additives used in our animal health products,” says Ivan Bonev, Director of the Biovet production site in Peshtera (the initial name of Biovet is kept in Bulgaria, despite the creation in 2005 of the global brand Huvepharma®).

Our production capacity would be saturated, and this is why this capacity extension will allow Huvepharma to continue its growth,” – Matthew Evans, Head of Feed Additives Europe Huvepharma

The new plant doubles the fermentation capacity of the Peshtera site and brings the total fermentation capacity of Biovet in Bulgaria to more than 9,000m³ at the 3 sites, Peshtera, Botevgrad and Razgrad,” said Ivan Bonev during the visit to the new factory. “Our production capacity would be saturated, and this is why this capacity extension will allow Huvepharma to continue its growth,” says Matthew Evans, Head of Feed Additives Europe Huvepharma who recalls that one of the elements of the success of Huvepharma is the ability to produce the active ingredients for the vast majority of its products oneself, moreover in Europe.

The 21 fermenters seen from the top of the factory. Photo: Huvepharma

Huvepharma now has flexibility to ferment its entire current product portfolio in one place, with additional capacity remaining to introduce new products to their range in the future. Facilities at the new plant also include a complete power station including high-voltage substation and the respective voltage-reduction facilities, and a new fully automated logistics centre with a capacity of 10,000 pallets. “The increased capacity in our new production facility in Peshtera allows us to meet our ambitious and continuous growth plans to expand our market share in the field of fermented products including coccidiostats, antibiotics, enzymes, probiotics and human health APIs,” stated Eddy Piron, Managing Director of Huvepharma NV who added : “All our plants have been approved by the European regulatory authorities. We operate under European GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) guidelines and have FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approval, making us an attractive and internationally competitive production partner.”

Thanks to its global network of subsidiaries and representative offices, Huvepharma sells Biovet products in more than 90 countries around the world. North America dominates in sales (32%), followed by Europe at 28 (27%), then Asia (17%) and the rest of Europe (12%). In May 2019, Biovet and Huvepharma together hold over 3,000 marketing authorisations (MAs) in over 100 countries worldwide, led by Europe (48%), followed by Asia (25%), Central and South America (12%), then North America (9%).