Q: Why did you feel that Mexico was a good place to establish a subsidiary?

MV: We have been in Mexico for over 40 years. Although the company began in the personal care market, we have seen great growth in the pharmaceutical industry in the last decade. I think Mexican customers really value the ingredients and expertise we can offer to help them get the best performance from their active ingredients.

Q: What is the market outlook for the world of pharmaceuticals?

MV: The pharma market is changing. In fact, it has already changed with biopharmaceuticals playing an increasingly important role. In 2004, just one of the leading global drugs was a so-called big molecule or biologic, with nine others being developed through more traditional means. Ten years later, seven of the top 10 new drugs approved in 2014 were biologics. This increased development of biologics is shifting R&D development toward injectables, not just needles but increased sophistication led by devices such as pens and autoinjectors. Croda’s wide range of Super Refined ingredients, and especially our high-purity Polysorate range are well suited to meet the needs in this area.

Q: What can you tell us about your Super Refined™ range of ingredients and how they help overcome industry challenges?

MV: One of the main challenges faced by pharmaceutical formulators is the ability to produce stable drug formulations. Many active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) can respond unstably to oxidation, moisture or pH, affecting the both the stability of the drug and the final formulation.

To create products with both superior quality and purity, Croda developed a proprietary flash chromatographic process called Super Refining. This process physically removes impurities from pharmaceutical excipients without altering their fundamental structure. The removal of these polar impurities helps reduce API interaction, maintaining both the stability of the drug and the final formulation.

Q: What niches do you operate in?

CE: In oncology we have a wide range of ingredients suitable for use in parenteral applications. Consumers expect high-quality transparent liquids without any particles or sediments. If a patient sees a strange particle in a product particularly in a liquid or an injectable liquid, they will rightly not trust the medicine. We also have a wide range of ingredients for topical application and expertise in the area of oral liquids.

Q: How do you see your position in Mexico over the next several years?

CE: The Latin American management of Croda is indeed looking at Mexico as a growth hub. Considering that our specialties are applicable in a few niche specialties we have very aggressive growth targets in those segments. This growth does not exactly match the growth of the market as the market will grow mostly in solids. Over the next few years we will be looking into biosimilars, a growing niche believed to be the future of the pharmaceutical industry. We also produce high-purity Omega 3 fish oil concentrates that provide clinically supported health benefits for nutritional and pharmaceutical use. Our Incromega™ and OmeRx™ fish oil concentrates are produced using proprietary PureMax™ technology.

MV: We have a skincare lab in Mexico and have been looking into claim substantiation, which is related to the technical aspect of hair care or skin rejuvenation. We pride ourselves on our technical expertise and have invested several million dollars in our Mexican offices and laboratories as part of our continued investment.

Q: Based on your experience so far, do you foresee further investment in Mexico?

MV: Yes we are certainly hopeful to grow our footprint. Croda Mexico is composed of three major divisions: Life Sciences, which oversees both crop care and pharma, Personal Care, and Performance Technologies and Industrial Chemicals (PTIC), which focuses on market segments such as Home Care, GeoTech (Petroleum & Gas), Mining and Polymer Additives.