Fonterra to make more pharmaceutical lactose

A building project that began at Fonterra's lactose plant at Kapuni in Taranaki this week will help the cooperative become the world's No 2 manufacturer of pharmaceutical lactose.

Allan Burton, Fonterra's director of growth business, normally based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was at Kapuni on Tuesday to watch work begin on the development of the new pharmaceutical lactose plant and said it was a significant step for the company.

"We are currently the third biggest manufacturer in the world of pharmaceutical lactose ... and this will enable us to become the second, behind Dutch company DMV," Mr Burton said.

The new plant, which will be commissioned later this year, will produce pharmaceutical lactose of such high quality that it can be inhaled, enabling it to be used in that growing new form of medical treatment.

Fonterra's manager of pharmaceutical lactose growth business, Sandra Neild, said the pharmaceutical industry was getting a growing demand from its customers for inhalable medicines and the demand was being passed on to the manufacturers.

"The Kapuni plant will employ the latest technology and be built to the highest standards," Miss Neild said.

"Construction and commissioning will follow testing and review protocols, developed by the pharmaceutical industry, to ensure the plant meets rigorous specifications."

Miss Neild said the delivery of drugs to patients via the lungs was a new and growing channel, offering opportunities for fast, slow or more controlled release, access to active drug ingredients not available when swallowed in tablet form and the ability to more accurately target the problem site in the body.

"Inhalation is used for treatment of respiratory-related problems such as asthma and hay fever and also for infections, cancer and cystic fibrosis. In the foreseeable future it is likely that it will also be used for the treatment of diabetes, delivery of pain medication and as an alternative to injections."

Currently the world market for inhalation-quality pharmaceutical lactose is worth $5.5 million a year and is expected to grow by 15 per cent a year in the next five, with many new drugs being trialled.

Mr Burton said this growth matched Fonterra's targets for its growth businesses and the Kapuni development would help it compete with its major competitors in the pharmaceutical lactose side of its business.

- NZPA