Merck’s Allergopharma to invest 40 million euros in production facility

Germany’s Merck KGaA (MRK: DE) has broken ground on a new production facility for its Allergopharma unit in Reinbek near Hamburg, which is estimated to cost nearly 40 million euros ($54.7 million).

The new facility will be used, among other things, to expand production to serve new markets such as China. It will be constructed on the current Allergopharma premises, products for the diagnosis and treatment of type 1 allergies such as hay fever or allergic asthma are to be manufactured under ultrapure, sterile conditions. Completion of the building is scheduled for 2016.

"We want to fully exploit the potential of our business, whether in Emerging Markets or in rapidly growing and highly promising areas such as the global allergy market," said Stefan Oschmann, Merck executive board member with responsibility for pharmaceuticals, including the Allergopharma unit. "By offering a highly competitive product range, we want to continue to tap the global allergy market," he added.