Merial purchases new manufacturing site in Puerto Rico

Merial has announced the acquisition of a manufacturing facility in Puerto Rico belonging to Merck Sharp and Dohme.

The deal is yet to be approved by the US Federal Trade Commission but, if ratified, it would allow Merial to make use of the site's established expertise in chewables manufacturing technology. As part of this, around 200 of the facility's current employees will be retained.

Located in Barceloneta, the production site has been involved in and will retain responsibility for manufacturing and packaging Merial's industry-leading Heartgard and Heartgard Plus products.

This is the latest addition to Merial's global manufacturing network, which currently spans nine countries.

Carsten Hellmann, Merial's chief executive officer and executive vice-president of parent company Sanofi, said the acquisition will "enable Merial to further extend its global production capabilities to deliver high-quality and innovative medicines that enhance the health and wellbeing of animals".

The global animal health company has operations in more than 150 countries and employs around 6,200 people worldwide.