Leading marine biotech firm has cosmetics market in its sights

12 July 2011

Leading Scottish marine biotechnology company, Aquapharm Biodiscovery Ltd, has reached a crucial new stage in the development of next generation cosmetics harnessing its unique collection of marine micro-organisms.

Aquapharm, which signed a three year R&D agreement with Croda, a global leader in speciality chemicals for the personal care market in 2008, has struck a renewed deal to work with Croda's highly respected cosmetics subsidiary, Sederma, to advance a shortlist of naturally sourced candidates identified during the collaboration towards the market.

Prof. Simon Best, CEO of Aquapharm, explains: "I'm delighted that Sederma and Aquapharm will continue to build on the foundations established through our successful collaboration with Croda; it confirms the rich potential of our marine microbe collection as a source of next generation cosmetic ingredients for skincare application. We are now on course to see the first of our products launched to market as early as 2013."

The personal care market is valued at £175bn and, despite global recession, continues to grow at a rate of nearly 5% per annum.

Dr Keith Layden, President, Croda Enterprise Technology, says: "Aquapharm is one of the UK's most promising biotech firms, breaking new ground with its pioneering research into marine natural products. Our collaboration thus far has led to many exciting new developments which promise to deliver novel and sustainable solutions for the personal care industry.

"We are excited to now be able to bring all of that research to bear through our subsidiary, Sederma, which is dedicated to the development of active ingredients for the cosmetics industry. Together with
Aquapharm, we are truly excited by the potential that this partnership holds, both in bringing fresh innovation to the market and in generating significant new revenue streams for both companies."

2010 has seen Aquapharm go from strength-to-strength, securing £4.2 million of funding from existing investors Aescap Venture, Tate & Lyle Ventures, Highlands & Islands Enterprise and NESTA. Aquapharm expects to conclude further collaborations with personal care, nutrition and beverage partners in the near future.

< back