Prevtec Microbia announces $600,000 investment to expand facilities in saint-hyacinthe’s science park. This is the fourth expansion project in Saint-Hyacinthe’s City of Biotechnology since early spring.
The company, which specializes in developing and marketing alternatives to antibiotics to improve the health and production performance of food animals, will be expanding into an adjacent space in the Victor-Théodule-Daubigny pavilion of the Biotechnology Development Centre (CDB). The 2,800-square-foot expansion will give the company more laboratory space and additional work areas. The project also involves purchasing new specialized equipment.
“Our growth over the last several years makes this expansion project necessary and will make it possible for us to increase our research and development activities. It will also allow us to hire additional employees over the short and medium term,” said Éric Nadeau, Prevtec Microbia’s vice-president of scientific affairs, during the press meeting held to mark the start of the work.
To bring this project to fruition, Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole will be contributing around $400,000 for some of the permanent changes to the building, which it owns.
“Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole is proud to invest in this project to help Prevtec Microbia reach its growth objectives. This company is a fine showcase for the scientific activities going on in Saint-Hyacinthe because the products it markets are based on the expertise and work of local researchers and institutions,” added André Barnabé, general manager of Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole.
Prevtec Microbia currently sells the Coliprotec® line of live vaccines given to piglets orally in drinking water to prevent illnesses caused by the Escherichia coli bacterium. These vaccines were developed based on research conducted by Dr. John M. Fairbrother, director of the World Organisation for Animal Health’s Reference Laboratory for Escherichia coli at Université de Montréal’s faculty of veterinary medicine in Saint-Hyacinthe.
Coliprotec® F4, Prevtec Microbia’s first commercial product, has been sold in Canada since 2007 and in the European Union since 2015. It is also approved in Brazil (2010) and the United States (2018). In 2017, the company received authorization to market the Coliprotec® F4/F18 vaccine for the European Union (where over five million doses have already been sold), for Canada and then Russia and the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The Coliprotec® line of vaccines also includes Coliprotec® F18, which has been distributed in Canada since 2015. Prevtec is currently developing various products in collaboration with different partners.
Located in the City of Biotechnology since 2009, Prevtec Microbia is one of Canada’s most vibrant veterinary biotechnology companies, with a team of 20 employees. A few weeks ago, it became the first Canadian company to be named Best Company in North America by prestigious online agribusiness intelligence platform Animal Pharm.
The Biotechnology Development Centre (CDB) is a group of buildings that Saint-Hyacinthe Technopole makes available to start-ups or branches of existing businesses with an innovative biotech project in mind. Once this project is completed, the Victor-Théodule-Daubigny pavilion, which houses Prevtec, will have attained 100% occupancy with six tenant businesses.
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