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Supplier News: Esteve CDMO, Recipharm, Bio-Techne & More 

The latest from CDMOs, CMOs, and suppliers featuring Esteve CDMO, Recipharm, Bio-Techne, Antheia, Touchlight, Viralgen, LGM Pharma and GeneFab.  

Chemicals/Chemical API Manufacturing 
* Esteve CDMO Investing $80 M To Expand API Mfg in China 
* Bio-Techne Opens New Small-Molecule Mfg Facility 
Biologics Manufacturing 
* CDMO GeneFab, Axiom in Mfg Pact 
* Antheia Gets $80-M Loan Commitment from US Gov’t for Biosynthesized APIs 
Formulation Development/Drug Product Manufacturing 
* Recipharm Expands High Potency OSD Mfg & Sterile Mfg for Creams, Ointments 
General 
* LGM Pharma Acquires Sannova Analytical 
Appointments  
* DNA CDMO Touchlight Appoints Interim CEO
* Gene-Therapy CDMO Viralgen Appoints New CEO 

Chemicals/Chemical API Manufacturing 

Esteve CDMO Investing $80 M To Expand API Mfg in China 
Esteve CDMO, a CDMO of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), has announced the relocation, expansion, and modernization of its existing manufacturing operations in China, to a new site in Shaoxing, China, supported by an investment of more than $80 million. 

The new site comprises three manufacturing workshops with a total reaction volume of 250 cubic meters, with space reserved for an additional 150+ cubic meters for a total reaction capacity to exceed 400+ cubic meters as manufacturing needs evolve. The site has been designed with the necessary service and utility infrastructure to support future expansion. 

The company’s presence in China dates to 2000. Its China operations complement its capabilities available across its broader manufacturing network, which includes sites in Spain, the US, and Mexico. Last month (September 2026), the company approved an additional $17.5 million for a capacity expansion and containment capabilities at its facility in Morton Grove, Illinois, bringing total announced investment at the site to $33 million. Esteve acquired the Morton Grove facility from its acquisition of the CDMO, Regis Technologies, in 2025.  

Source: Esteve CDMO 

Bio-Techne Opens New Small-Molecule Mfg Facility 
Bio-Techne a supplier of life-science reagents, instruments and services for research, diagnostic, and bioprocessing, has announced the opening of a new manufacturing facility for GMP-grade small molecules in Bristol, UK.  

The purpose-built 10,000-square-foot Bristol facility features five ISO-8 multifunctional cleanrooms and two ISO-7 cleanrooms dedicated to GMP small-molecule manufacturing and product handling. The facility will manufacture GMP small-molecules products for use in cell therapy research and workflows. 

Source: Bio-Techne Corporation 

Biologics Manufacturing 

CDMO GeneFab, Axiom in Mfg Pact 
GeneFab, a CDMO of cell and gene therapies, and Axiom Biosciences, a clinical-stage bio/pharmaceutical company, have formed a strategic partnership under which GeneFab will provide development and manufacturing support for establishing production processes for Axiom’s therapeutic candidates.  

Source: Axiom Biosciences 

Antheia Gets $80-M Loan Commitment from US Gov’t for Biosynthesized APIs 
Antheia, a Menlo Park, California-based CDMO of biosynthesized active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), has received a conditional commitment from the US Department of War’s Office of Strategic Capital for a direct, long-term loan of up to $80 million for the production of APIs. Antheia was founded in 2015 and uses a yeast-based production platform.  

The conditional financing, alongside additional private capital, would support Antheia’s US manufacturing strategy. The conditional loan commitment specifies additional steps Antheia must complete before financial close, including satisfying various financial, legal, technical, investment, due diligence, and other requirements.  

Source: Antheia 

Formulation Development/Drug Product Manufacturing 

Recipharm Expands High Potency OSD Mfg & Sterile Mfg for Creams, Ointments 
Recipharm has expanded its high-potency oral solid dosage (OSD) capabilities at its site in Leganés, Spain, to GMP pilot scale, and additionally added a new sterile filling line for creams and ointments at its site in Odivelas, Portugal.  

The new pilot-scale suite in Leganés is built around dry granulation, with high-potency tableting and coating in the same containment area. The new capabilities build on Leganés’ commercial high-potency operations, which handle compounds up to OEB 5 with a capacity of approximately 250 tons per year. The site also manufactures and packages conventional and film-coated tablets and capsules, with full serialization and in-house quality control laboratories. 

The new sterile line in at is site in Odivelas fills both aluminum and polyfoil tubes with sizes ranging from 3.5 g to 30 g, with output of 8 million to 15 million units per year, depending on batch size and fill volume. Alongside the site’s existing multidose ophthalmic line, the new line lets customers source a broader range of sterile products from one site.  

Source: Recipharm (Spain Pilot Scale) & Recipharm (Portugal Line) 

General 

LGM Pharma Acquires Sannova Analytical 
LGM Pharma, a Boca Raton, Florida-based provider of API sourcing, contract analytical testing, and drug-development services, has acquired Sannova Analytical, a Somerset, New Jersey-based contract research laboratory.  

The acquisition expands LGM Pharma’s analytical testing services business by adding GLP bioanalysis services, including peptide and oligonucleotide testing, as well as genotoxic and nitrosamine impurity testing, extractables and leachables evaluations, and additional elemental impurities testing to the company’s existing cGMP analytical services.  

Sannova will continue to operate under its own name as Sannova Analytical, led by its current management team. The acquisition is part of LGM Pharma’s strategy to build a US-based analytical services platform alongside its API sourcing business. 

Source: LGM Pharma 

Appointments 

CDMO Touchlight Appoints Interim CEO 
Touchlight, a CDMO specializes in cell-free, enzymatic production of synthetic DNA, has announced that Karen Fallen, currently the company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), is stepping down as CEO, and the company’s Board of Directors has appointed Will Downie, currently CEO of Argenta, a CRO/CMO focused on animal health, as Interim CEO. 

Downie has more than 30 years of experience across the pharmaceutical and life-sciences industries. Prior to his current role as CEO at Argenta, he was CEO of Vectura Group, a specialist in inhaled drug delivery, and previously spent a decade as Chief Commercial Officer at Catalent. Earlier in his career, he held senior commercial and leadership roles with GE Healthcare, Sanofi and Merck & Co. 

Source: Touchlight 

Gene-Therapy CDMO Viralgen Appoints New CEO 
Viralgen, a CDMO providing adeno-associated virus gene-therapy manufacturing, has announced that Angela Ochoa Chico, currently Product Supply Strategy & Excellence Lead at the Pharmaceuticals Division of Bayer, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) following the transition of Jimmy Vanhove, current CEO, to a new role at Bayer, effective January 1, 2027. Viralgen is a subsidiary of AskBio, a Durham, North Carolina-based clinical-stage gene-therapy company and a subsidiary within the Bayer Group.  

Ochoa Chico has nearly 20 years of international experience across pharmaceutical operations, quality, manufacturing, strategy, and organizational transformation. Prior to her role at Bayer, she led manufacturing and quality organizations in Mexico and held global roles spanning operations, regulatory affairs, supply chain, and strategic network management. 

Source: Viralgen