// AMINO Acids – The building blocks of life produced by us

AMINO expands its biopharma capabilities through a strategic partnership with Croda International. This partnership represent a significant milestone in the development of AMINO and its ambition of becoming a full-service supplier of amino acids for the nutritional and pharmaceutical markets.

Croda International Plc (“Croda”), a global leader in specialty ingredients, today announced a strategic supply partnership with Amino GmbH (“Amino”), a leading manufacturer of pharmaceutical-grade amino acids, aimed at strengthening the global availability of high purity amino acids for pharmaceutical formulation and biomanufacturing.

Combining Croda’s deep expertise in smart science and global market reach, with Amino’s advanced capabilities in precision manufacturing of amino acids will enable Croda to deliver even more innovative, high-quality and sustainable solutions  that help customers accelerate their product development and achieve greater efficiency.

"This partnership reflects Croda’s strategy, to strengthen our ability to support customers in the fast-evolving biopharma landscape” said Katie Dec, Global Business Director, Croda International Plc. "Amino’s strong reputation and expertise  make them an ideal partner as we continue to deliver high-quality, reliable materials needed to bring new therapies to market.” 

“The partnership with Croda is both a milestone and a catalyst for Amino’s ambitions in biopharmaceuticals. The combination of Croda’s market reach and our high-purity amino acid production expertise forms a partnership dedicated to meeting specific customer demands,” states Dr. Lutz Thomas, Managing Director of Amino GmbH.
 

AMINO has been awarded a Silver Medal by the independent rating agency EcoVadis in the matter of its commitment to sustainability. This places AMINO among the top 15% of companies assessed worldwide.

The evaluation is based on four key pillars: environment, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement. Sustainability is an increasingly important factor for future-oriented companies. The EcoVadis rating creates transparency in the international business environment and provides insights to minimize risks, foster improvements, and drive positive change for both the environment and society.

“Our implemented projects  prove to make an impact, we are constantly  developing our sustainability strategy further and assume responsibility as an internationally active company,” says ESG Manager Felix Frost. “The Silver Medal is a confirmation and a source of motivation.”

The report provides information on the challenges and measures taken over the past three years in the areas of environmental protection, social responsibility and successful corporate governance (ESG) and presents the goals on the way to a sustainable future.

‘Sustainability is not just a trend for us but is firmly anchored in our corporate values. It is a central component of our actions and our corporate culture.,’ explains Felix Frost, ESG Manager. 'With our latest report, we intend to demonstrate our commitment to transparency and our active involvement in creating the future.'

Amino has again been awarded the FSSC 22000 certificate (Food Safety System Certification 22000). ‘The award confirms that the management system for food safety has been implemented correctly and that the underlying processes are reliably applied and implemented,’ explains Dr Jörn Oetken, head of quality management.

The scope of the certificate encompasses processing  of amino acids and related substances for nutritional products and infant formula. It is based on ISO standards and is recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).

´FSSC 22000 internationally enjoys a high level of acceptance and supports our growth-oriented internationalization strategy targeted at the nutrition market,’ explains Kai-Philipp Thomas, head of marketing and sales.

Amino India (Sales & Distribution) Pvt. Ltd. is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Sandeep Shivaji Somavanshi to the position of Managing Director effective January 1, 2025.
“With extensive experience in sales & marketing, business development and distribution channel management, Mr. Somavanshi brings valuable expertise, particularly in the field of amino acids to Amino India”, states Kai-Philipp Thomas, head of marketing & sales at the parent company Amino GmbH. “Sandeep’s appointment aims to further strengthen Amino's presence in India in close collaboration with Barentz India Pvt. Ltd. and to supplement its position in Asia along with Amino Korea Co. Ltd.”, emphasizes Seong-Jin Bae, managing director of Amino Korea. Sandeep Somavanshi and Kai-Philipp Thomas, in succession of Dr. Lutz Thomas, will jointly serve on the board of Amino India, a consequent step forward in Amino’s strategy to create the future.

AMINO GmbH has successfully completed the registration of 22 different amino acids and active ingredients with the DGDA (Directorate General of Drug Administration) in Bangladesh. This was another big step towards internationalizing the business and accessing the market in Bangladesh. Together with our partner SKYPAM Pvt. Ltd., Dhaka, we are now specifically increasing our marketing and sales efforts and are confident that we will underpin our growth course.   

On June 9, 2024, the construction of a water experience area on Mühlenweg in Räbke.

Räbke's mayor Rainer Angerstein invited people to the Liesebach water mill and welcomed the main actors and ideas behind the measure. District Administrator Gerhard Radeck once again praised the community spirit in the village, which association head Werner Denneberg wholeheartedly agreed with.

A special „Thank you” went to AMINO GmbH Frellstedt, represented by its managing director, Dr. Lutz Thomas. AMINO had donated the property on the Schunter to the community for its renaturation.

Amino GmbH, a manufacturer of high-quality pharmaceutical-grade amino acids and related substances for pharmaceutical, biopharma, and nutritional applications, has appointed Barentz, a leading global distributor of life science ingredients, as its strategic partner for distributing its amino acid portfolio in North and Central America starting in May 2024.

This collaboration gives Barentz’s customers access to a wide range of high-quality amino acids and signifies a mutual commitment to expanding market reach and enhancing customer satisfaction.

Divya Tewari, President of the pharmaceutical division of North and Central America at Barentz, said: “We are excited with this opportunity to give our growing customer base in North and Central America access to the highest-quality and purity amino acid portfolio.” Kai-Philipp Thomas, Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Amino, emphasizes: “With the collaboration with Barentz we are expanding geographical reach to the American markets, a next step in our internationalization strategy to become a global supplier.”

“Our strategic intention is to supply our products and services worldwide”, states Kai-Philipp Thomas, head of marketing & sales, “the agreement with Skypam to cover the Bangladesh market is a natural addition to expand our global range”. Skypam’s president Palash Kumar Chowdhury wishes to build on his experience in the market and is enthusiastic to support AMINO entering the market in Bangladesh. “We will forge new alliances to supplement our marketing & distribution network for our pharmaceutical-grade amino acids and related products in order to optimize our global coverage as part of the internationalization of AMINO”, Kai-Philipp Thomas emphasizes.

The Indian authority CDSCO (Central Drug Standard Control Organisation) has upon thorough examination approved of the registration of 9 different amino acids and API’s.

The registration enables AMINO to sell the following products for pharmaceutical applications in India: L-aspartic acid, L-asparagine monohydrate, L-isoleucine, L-leucine, L-malic acid, L-methionine, L-phenylalanine, L-tryptophan and L-valine.

Dr. Lutz Thomas, CEO of AMINO, emphasizes the relevance of the Indian registration as "an important step within our expansion strategy." Kai-Philipp Thomas, head of sales, continues: "As part of the internationalization of our business, further registrations with the Indian CDSCO are planned like L-alanine, glycine, L-histidine, N-acetyl-L-tyrosine, L-serine, L-threonine and L-tyrosine.”

Amino GmbH, located in Frellstedt, has been successfully FSSC certified. Only two months after its subsidiary, Amino Manufacturing (South Africa) Pty. Ltd, Amino has received its FSSC 22000 certificate.

All of the production sites of the Amino group have demonstrated, during an audit conducted in accordance with international standards, that they have implemented a comprehensive food safety management system. The target of this system is to increase security for retailers and consumers and to create more transparency within the entire supply chain.

"Amino is ideally prepared for the expansion of its nutrition business with high-purity amino acids," explained Dr. Jörn Oetken, Head of Quality Management at AMINO GmbH.

Amino Manufacturing (South Africa) Pty. Ltd. (AmSA), a subsidiary of Amino GmbH in Frellstedt, has received its FSSC 22000 – Certificate after successfully completing the respective audit.

FSSC stands for Food Safety System Certification and is a system that is accepted globally. The obtained certificate demonstrates that AmSA has implemented comprehensive management systems for food safety.

Upon the completion of the certification AmSA that currently manufactures L-Tyrosine to be supplied to the nutrition market. “This diversification of the production risk is an important milestone of our strategic development and part of our business continuity plan”, explains Kai-Philipp Thomas, AMINO’s head of site development & technology, “L-tyrosine is the beginning, other amino acids will follow”.

The German Donors' Association once again honors the research and development activities of AMINO GmbH with the seal of approval "Innovative through Research". The association has already been collecting data from research-based companies in Germany since 2014 in order to determine their innovative strength and develop corresponding funding concepts.

"Complementing the further development of our amino acids business, we have been investing in research & development for the next generation of products and services for several years," explains Dr. Lutz Thomas, Managing Director, Amino GmbH's corporate strategy. "With a young team of scientists, we are specifically looking for new products that, on the one hand, match our technological competencies and, on the other hand, complement our range of products in a meaningful and sustainable way. The AminoVation platform offers customers to develop new products from process development in the laboratory to upscaling to pilot plant scale and accompanied by analytical and regulatory support, and to prepare them for transfer to production scale. "The goal of our innovation projects is to produce the new products on an industrial scale in AMINO's production facilities and thus enter into a partnership with our customers from development through to long-term supply agreements," emphasizes Kai-Philipp Thomas, Head of Site Development & Technology, who is delighted about the renewed award.

Frellstedt. The rating agency EcoVadis, an independent evaluation platform for the assessment of Corporate Social Responsibilty (CSR), has once again awarded AMINO's performance in the area of sustainability with "Silver". This puts AMINO among the top 25 percent of companies evaluated by EcoVadis.

EcoVadis has been rating Amino since 2015 on a voluntary and evidence-based basis with regard to the environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement. The rating is intended to contribute to greater transparency between international business partners and recognises special commitment to greater sustainability and social responsibility throughout the supply chain. EcoVadis focuses on the sustainability intelligence that influences every business decision.

"The renewed award strengthens us in our goal to take social responsibility as a globally operating company and encourages us to further improve our sustainability performance", explains managing director Dr. Lutz Thomas. 

Selected guests and employees celebrated the development of the amino acid manufacturer, the opening of plant 6 as well as the initiated gradual succession plan in its management.

“We will abide by our strategy and support our development by investing into the future. Therefore, we will provide more resources for the research and development of new nutrients and active pharmaceutical ingredients, expand our production capacity in our core business and establish new customer services and offers via the AMINOVATION platform ", states Managing Director Dr. Lutz Thomas.

For the future we plan to strengthen the internationalization of the sales & distribution of the AMINO products and to further develop AMINO into a modern European pharmaceutical company. Therefore, in a next step, among other things, the production capacities for raw materials and finished products at AMINO Manufacturing South Africa Pty. Ltd. will be expanded.

Dr. Lutz Thomas: “Thanks to our steady growth over the past 15 years, AMINO has become an innovative and modern company. We would like to see this development to continue in the future. "

AMINO continues its development of the site in Frellstedt, region Helmstedt, and commissions its new, modern quality center. As a manufacturer of amino acids and related active pharmaceutical ingredients and nutrients, quality assurance is a core competence and the foundation of the company's success.

The opening of the quality center with 700 m² in size encompassing state-of-the-art pharmaceutical quality control laboratories marks a further milestone in the development of the company, which is celebrating its 15^th anniversary this year.

After a construction period of 12 months and a total investment of some EUR 3.0 Mio, the new building provides generous space for further growth of the core business and allows the addition of new, innovative products to the portfolio. Dr. Jörn Oetken, project manager and head of quality management, is pleased about the timely completion of the project, amid the additional challenges posed by the Corona pandemic. "With the new quality center, we are meeting the highest quality standards for a European pharmaceutical active ingredient company and support our global growth strategy sustainably," explains Dr. Oetken.

“In addition to strengthening our innovation power, the expansion of our production capacity and the upgrade of our utilities, the quality center, which is located centrally on the site, highlights our commitment to the quality and sustainability objectives as well as the future development of our company”, adds Dr. Lutz Thomas, AMINO’s managing director.

The project was funded partially by the NBank.

AMINO wants to meet the high demands of their customers regarding sustainable products and technologies as well as the fulfillment of ecological and social standards. Therefor AMINO has subjected itself to a voluntary Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) assessment by the independent platform EcoVadis and was once again awarded with the silver medal.

The evaluation includes 21 CSR criterias from the areas of environment, social affairs, ethics and sustainable procurement. The rating is intended to contribute to more transparency between international business partners and recognizes the special commitment to greater sustainability and social responsibility in the entire supply chain.

"The award strengthens us in our goal to take social responsibility as a globally operating company and encourages us to further improve our sustainability performance," explains managing director Dr. Lutz Thomas. 

At the gala in Düsseldorf on September 26, 2020 the finalists of the annual contest "Großer Preis des Mittelstandes" for Lower Saxony / Bremen have been announced. AMINO was honored as one of 5 finalists.

“We appreciate the award as finalist 2020 in recognition of the development from a liquid sugar site to a modern production site for active pharmaceutical ingredients”, states Dr. Lutz Thomas, managing director of AMINO GmbH. “Our track record for growth we currently support by investing into a state-of-the-art production facility with an annual production capacity of 1,000 mt. We are convinced to have established a good foundation for the future of the company and the site in Frellstedt. Internationalization and innovation remain the pillars of our strategy”, Dr. Thomas adds.

As part of its sustainability program and specifically its energy policy, AMINO has committed to precisely monitor and reduce its electricity, natural gas and water consumption. The underlying energy management system was introduced in 2014 and has now successfully been recertified under DIN ISO 50001: 2018.

The innovation network pharmaceutical production technology - short “ProPharm” – was founded by six small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as six research partners from the Technical University of Brunswick and the Leibniz University of Hanover. The objective of the network is to enable fast and consistent transfer of research results into the pharmaceutical and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) production. As an API manufacturer AMINO has joined the network. Together with the scientific research partners innovation projects can be initiated and progressed. “We have worked successfully with the Technical University of Brunswick on several research projects over the past few years. I am confident that the network will allow us to generate further synergy effects,” explains Dr. Lutz Thomas, managing director of AMINO GmbH. The network is funded by the Central Innovation Program for SMEs (ZIM) of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi).