PrecisionBio Signs Long-Term Supply Contract for Animal Diagnostic Devices
Pet Health Management App 'TTcare' Launches Service in the US
Traditional Pharmaceutical Companies Begin Full-Scale Entry into Animal Medicine and Supplement Market
Pets.
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The global animal market is emerging as a new 'blue ocean' for the domestic pharmaceutical, bio, and digital healthcare industries. With the growth of the pet market and increasing demand for animal diagnostics and pharmaceuticals, opportunities for entry are opening up, and it is considered an attractive market due to the possibility of utilizing existing technology and facilities.
Full-Scale Entry into the Global Animal Diagnostics and Pet Healthcare Market
According to the industry on the 5th, Precision Bio, a company specializing in in vitro diagnostics, signed a supply contract worth approximately 118.2 billion KRW over 15 years with global animal diagnostics company Antech for animal clinical chemistry analyzers and cartridges. Precision Bio plans to supply 11 types of animal clinical chemistry diagnostic analyzers and cartridges to Antech starting in the second half of this year.
Antech is known as a leading company in the animal diagnostic equipment field, owning more than 60 animal diagnostic laboratories exclusively in North America and supplying imaging and ultrasound equipment. Precision Bio's 'Exdia PT10V' is a compact clinical chemistry platform the size of an A4 sheet of paper, capable of testing a total of 27 internal components. It also supplies 11 types of cartridges including comprehensive tests, pre-surgical tests, electrolyte tests, liver tests, and kidney tests. Until next year, the focus will be on installing analyzers in the North American market, with cartridge sales expected to ramp up from the second half of next year.
Kim Han-shin, CEO of Precision Bio, said, “We expect that Antech’s existing network of animal hospitals and animal diagnostic laboratories, combined with our point-of-care diagnostic products, will create synergy in the North American animal diagnostics market.” He added, “Starting with the North American entry of the animal clinical chemistry business, we are preparing for local clinical trials and FDA approvals to launch human clinical chemistry products and immunodiagnostic products in the North American market.”
Global market entry in the pet healthcare sector, which provides health management for companion animals, is also notable. AI4Pet’s pet healthcare application 'TT Care' recently launched its service in the United States, marking the start of active market penetration. TT Care analyzes the health condition of the eyes or skin by taking photos with a mobile phone using artificial intelligence to detect disease symptoms. It also offers various health management services tailored to the pet’s species and life cycle, including activity levels and appropriate feeding amounts. Domestically, the accumulated number of members has reached nearly 100,000. Notably, it received an Innovation Award at 'CES 2022,' the world’s largest IT and electronics exhibition, recognizing its technological capability and innovation.
Traditional Pharmaceutical Companies Enter the Animal Pharmaceuticals and Nutraceuticals Market
The domestic pharmaceutical industry is also accelerating its entry into the animal pharmaceuticals market. Daewoong Pharmaceutical signed a business agreement last month with Seoul National University for joint research and development of animal pharmaceuticals and the establishment of a joint venture. Through this agreement, over the next three years, they plan to collaborate on ▲research and efficacy studies of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapeutics ▲development of genetic disease treatments for dogs and cats ▲efficacy verification and research of animal pharmaceuticals and medical devices ▲development and commercialization of animal health functional food products ▲cooperation and joint R&D involving veterinary college faculty. They also set a goal to grow into a specialized company providing full lifecycle healthcare management for companion animals.
Health functional foods for companion animals are also being launched one after another. Kwangdong Pharmaceutical launched the premium pet dog supplement brand 'Gyeonokgo' in March this year. Recently, they released new lineups ‘Gyeonokgo Bon (本)’ and ‘Gyeonokgo Jang (匠).’ ‘Gyeonokgo Bon’ contains main ingredients such as Rehmannia glutinosa and Poria cocos concentrated extracts, red ginseng concentrate, and acacia honey, along with functional ingredients including EPA/DHA-containing oil (fish oil), N-acetylglucosamine, and hyaluronic acid. ‘Gyeonokgo Jang’ also uses Rehmannia glutinosa and Poria cocos concentrated extracts, red ginseng concentrate, and acacia honey as main ingredients, combined with fructooligosaccharides and 19 types of mixed probiotics.
Il-dong Pharmaceutical and Il-dong Bioscience introduced the ‘Il-dong Pet Series.’ It consists of products such as ‘Il-dong Pet Probiotics Biovita’ for pet gut health and ‘Il-dong Pet The Honest Boswellia’ for joint health. ‘Il-dong Pet Probiotics Biovita’ is divided into dog and cat versions and contains a total of 12 beneficial bacteria including lactobacilli, digestive bacteria, and butyric acid bacteria, as well as prebiotics, postbiotics, dietary fiber, yeast, vitamins B1, B2, C, zinc, and colostrum powder, all formulated considering pet gut health and immunity.
Dongkook Pharmaceutical also launched ‘Canivita All-in-One Dental Chew’ earlier this year in collaboration with BM Smile, designed for oral health and nutrition management of pet dogs. This dog-exclusive snack, patented for its design, is formulated with 10 functional ingredients and hypoallergenic components that help with oral, skin, immune, gut, joint, and eye health. Dongkook Pharmaceutical and BM Smile plan to cooperate further in joint development and sales of food and healthcare products for companion animals.
The entry of pharmaceutical companies into the pet market is expected to continue actively. An industry insider said, “As the pet market continues to grow, its potential remains large,” adding, “There will be ongoing efforts to leverage existing technological capabilities to build competitiveness in the pet market.”
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