The French pharmaceutical group is developing a dedicated industrial platform at its Beauvais site to support the manufacturing of Live Biotherapeutic Products (LBPs), from clinical batches to commercial production. The first clinical batches are expected in 2028.
Biocodex is strengthening its position in the emerging field of microbiome-based therapeutics with a €15 million investment in a new industrial platform dedicated to Live Biotherapeutic Products (LBPs). The facility, currently under development at the Group’s manufacturing site in Beauvais, France, is designed to address one of the sector’s key challenges: translating promising scientific research into reliable, large-scale pharmaceutical manufacturing.
Scientific advances in microbiome research are opening up new therapeutic opportunities across several areas, including oncology, inflammatory bowel diseases, rare diseases and women’s health. According to Biocodex, more than 200 LBP development programmes were identified worldwide in 2026, involving nearly 100 companies.
Yet, as the field progresses, access to specialised manufacturing capabilities remains a critical hurdle. Producing medicines based on living microorganisms requires highly specific processes, adapted to the characteristics of individual strains and, in some cases, complex microbial consortia. Ensuring consistent quality, process reproducibility and compliance with pharmaceutical standards is essential to moving these products beyond clinical development.
Bridging the gap between clinical development and commercial manufacturing
Biocodex’s new platform aims to address these industrial requirements by offering biotechnology companies access to dedicated manufacturing capabilities throughout the development process. The facility will support production from clinical batches through industrial scale-up and, ultimately, commercial manufacturing.
The platform will be open to biotechnology companies worldwide and may also support Biocodex’s own research and development programmes in live biotherapeutics.
Two companies are already involved in the project: Belgian biotech company MRM Health and French company Exeliom. Initial project activities are expected to begin in the coming months.
The development will follow a phased timeline, with initial activities launched in 2026, the production of the first clinical batches planned for the first half of 2028, and commercial manufacturing capabilities targeted for 2030.
Manufacturing capabilities tailored to living microorganisms
The technical challenges associated with LBPs have been considered from the outset of the platform’s design. These biological products can contain individual microbial strains or combinations of microorganisms, each requiring specific cultivation and production conditions.
Some strains, for example, are particularly sensitive to oxygen and demand tightly controlled production environments. The new facility will therefore incorporate specialised equipment and controlled-environment manufacturing processes to manage cultivation conditions, microbial consortia, co-cultures and other complex production requirements.
The project involves converting an existing 900 m² building at Biocodex’s Beauvais manufacturing site. Operating since 1968, the site covers 30,000 m² and currently produces 95 million packs annually, distributed across more than 100 countries. Its established capabilities span the pharmaceutical manufacturing chain, including production, quality control, packaging and preparation for shipment.
A strategic investment in French and European industrial capabilities
Beyond expanding its own industrial activities, the project reflects Biocodex’s ambition to contribute to the development of a specialised manufacturing ecosystem for next-generation biotherapeutics in France and Europe.
The Group brings more than 70 years of experience in microbiota and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Over the past decade, it has invested more than €100 million in its industrial capabilities and over €40 million in biotechnology companies and start-ups since 2016, a significant proportion of which operate in the therapeutic microbiome field.
The project has also received financial support from the Hauts-de-France Region, which has awarded Biocodex a grant towards the development of the new platform.
For Biocodex, the investment represents a strategic step towards strengthening healthcare and industrial sovereignty in a field where specialised manufacturing capacity will be increasingly important as more microbiome-based therapies progress through development.
As these innovative approaches move closer to clinical and commercial applications, the ability to manufacture them consistently and at scale will be a decisive factor in bringing new therapeutic solutions to patients.