BRAIN Biotech Expands European Footprint with Full Acquisition of Breatec and New Production Facility
Key Insights
BRAIN Biotech AG (search) has completed the acquisition of remaining minority shares in Dutch subsidiary Breatec B.V. (search), consolidating full ownership of all businesses in its BRAINBiocatalysts (search) division.
The company has signed a lease for a new enlarged production site near Den Bosch, Netherlands, which will serve as an integrated continental European production and warehousing hub with expanded enzyme-based baking applications capabilities.
As part of operational restructuring, BRAIN Biotech will close its Büttelborn, Germany facility and transfer production operations to the new Dutch site, with beverage enzyme operations moving to the company's R&D campus in Zwingenberg.
BRAIN Biotech AG (search), a leading provider of integrated solutions for the biologization of industry, announced today it has acquired the remaining minority shares in its Dutch subsidiary Breatec B.V. (search), completing full ownership of all businesses within its BRAINBiocatalysts (search) division.
The company simultaneously revealed plans for a significant expansion with a new production facility in the Netherlands, driven by commercial success and increasing sales volumes, particularly in the flour and bakery enzymes business.
The new site, located near Den Bosch in southern Netherlands along the A59 highway, will feature a substantially larger footprint than current facilities and serve as an integrated continental European production and warehousing hub. The facility will include a test laboratory for baked goods and an expanded competence center for enzyme-based baking applications to enhance customer collaboration and product development.
Strategic Consolidation and Operational Optimization
As part of this expansion, BRAIN Biotech will close its Büttelborn, Germany site, which currently specializes in enzymes and starter cultures for beverage production. These operations will be transferred gradually to the new Dutch facility, while the beverage enzyme competence center and its staff will relocate to the company's R&D campus in Zwingenberg, Germany.
The consolidation is expected to generate significant synergies through shared application knowledge, aligned operational footprint, and centralized warehousing and production. The restructuring will involve a limited staff reduction, primarily affecting the Büttelborn location.
Pieter-Jan Heijkoop, Vice President Food enzymes in the BRAINBiocatalysts (search) segment, expressed enthusiasm about the development: "I am extremely pleased and proud of this milestone investment. It demonstrated our firm commitment to meeting customer needs through superior application skills while optimizing our production facilities. The new location is truly a marvelous place."
Heijkoop highlighted the planned Baking Application Center, which will offer customers the opportunity to experience product prototypes firsthand. The site is expected to be fully operational before the end of 2025.
Financial Strategy and Customer Assurance
Michael Schneiders, BRAIN Biotech CFO, explained the financial rationale behind the transactions: "Buying out the Breatec minority shares was always our intention, and we now had an optimal window to successfully execute this transaction. Given the strong growth track record of our bakery enzymes business, we needed to establish a new facility, and the realization of synergies was clearly also a key driver in establishing this new site."
The company has assured customers that despite the ongoing relocation of production facilities, deliveries will continue without interruption.
Company Background
The BRAIN Biotech Group specializes in research, development, and production of specialty enzymes with a focus on food and life science industries. The company also develops microbial production organisms and scalable bioprocesses for economic production of specialty enzymes and other proteins.
The group's business activities are divided into two segments: BRAINBiocatalysts (search) (development, production and distribution of specialty enzymes, microorganisms, ingredients) and BRAINBioIncubator (search) (research-intensive development projects, pharmaceuticals). For production, the group operates fermentation plants in the UK as well as production facilities in continental Europe and the USA.
BRAIN Biotech has been listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since February 2016 (Ticker: BNN; ISIN DE0005203947 / WKN 520394). The company employs approximately 300 people across multiple locations and generated revenues of EUR 54.6 million in the 2023/24 financial year.