Croda International Plc has confirmed that, following receipt of unconditional approval from the South Korean regulatory authorities, it has now successfully completed the acquisition of Solus Biotech, a global leader in premium, biotechnology-derived active ingredients for beauty care and pharmaceuticals.

 

This follows the announcement on 6 February 2023 that Croda had reached an agreement to acquire Solus Biotech.

 

This acquisition will significantly strengthen Croda’s Beauty Actives portfolio and increases its exposure to targeted prestige segments. Located in South Korea, Solus expands Croda’s Asian manufacturing capability and will create a new biotechnology R&D hub in the region.  

 

Solus is a leading supplier of naturally derived powder ceramides, a high-growth global market with further potential to extend into formulated ceramides. The number of new personal care products containing ceramides has doubled over the last five years, principally for skin care but increasingly for hair care formulations. Access to Croda’s formulation capabilities will accelerate development of Solus’ formulated ceramides to create even greater value for our customers globally and address exciting, formulated ceramide demand.

 

Solus also brings a portfolio of phospholipids, spanning pharmaceutical applications and beauty care. These naturally derived phospholipids are produced at a GMP plant and can be used as delivery systems for pharmaceutical actives and cosmetics. This will strengthen our Pharma presence in Asia and enable collaborative R&D with Croda’s Avanti business for the supply of lipid systems for drug delivery. In addition, Solus is developing biotech-derived retinol, which is an exciting, sustainable alternative to synthetically derived retinol.  

 

Solus’ growth will be accelerated by Croda’s ownership through access to our technical and innovation capabilities, particularly in formulation, and by accessing our global selling network. The acquisition will give Croda greater ability to serve luxury beauty customers in Asia and globally, and the opportunity to accelerate delivery of Avanti’s pharma product pipeline.