BioGaia tablets, drops drive growth in first half

The company launched the drops in the Italian market during the first quarter and they are now available in Finland, South Africa and Sweden, with new markets expected to open up shortly.

Largely sold through pharmacies, the product targets small children with gastrointestinal disorders and mothers who want to boost their child's immune system.

explained BioGaia​ managing director Peter Rothschild.

"Doctors really like it and the product is now an easy sell,"​ he told NutraIngredients.com.

The drops generated an important share of the 36 per cent sales growth at Biogaia during this year's first half.

Sales of tablets and cultures to dairy customers were also good, lifting turnover to SEK28.2 million, reported the company today.

"The long-term work is paying off. Our distributors have been working with doctors and pharmacies and this is now starting to show in our tablet sales,"​ Rothschild added.

A new product to be launched next week by the Swedish dairy Skanemejerier is likely to maintain this momentum in Europe. The yoghurt drink will be introduced under the PrimaLiv brand, targeted at boosting immune health.

Another European customer has however delayed its product launch. The French firm that plans to use BioGaia's bottle cap with reuteri bacteria has once again moved back the launch, scheduling it for the fourth quarter.

The delay is said to be due to technical changes to the filling line.

Meanwhile a Chinese dairy customer that had planned to launch the LifeTop straw is now unlikely to do so but discussions regarding othe rproducts are underway.

Nevertheless higher sales this year have improved working capital and reduced operating losses to SEK9.9 million, compared to SEK14 million during the prior year's first half.

The company is not yet profitable but Rothschild suggests that profits are not long off.

"There's nothing that should stop similar growth in the next half. We're well on the way in all areas."​

In Asia, which continues to generate more than half of the firm's turnover, new customers for supplements have been signed in Hong Kong and India, and there are a further three contracts in Europe that are expected to lead to new products over the coming months.