José Antonio de la Puente CEO, ALCALIBER

How has Alcaliber's focus evolved since it was founded in 1973?

Alcaliber was founded as a company with the goal of supplying the domestic pharmaceutical industry, providing Spanish labs with specific API’s in a niche market. We also tried to integrate some activities that were previously developed by other companies. In 1973, there was a shortage in the market for the agricultural material used in pharmaceutical production. As a result, shareholders decided to incorporate and secure agricultural crops and create a fully integrated company that would handle everything from agricultural crop management to industrial API production. Until 2000, the company was focused on the domestic market but then I joined the company with the goal of developing our international activities, which has been the primary focus for the last 15 years. At present, 95% of our products are exported, making Alcaliber one of the main global suppliers. We account for 25% of the global demand for certain products.

What activities does Alcaliber partake in?

Alcaliber is a chemical company that acts as a supplier for the pharmaceutical industry. We use several varieties of an agricultural crop as our key raw material. The first stage of our production chain involves cultivating plants. We have a strong R&D department, discovering, developing, and improving all the strains we use to produce the range of alkaloids we have in our product portfolio. Well-managed and high-yielding agricultural crops are essential for processing efficiency and delivering our business plan. We do not own farms or land for this purpose; however, we do have excellent relationships with many farmers who have extensive knowledge in growing poppies. We have a highly skilled team of agricultural engineers teaching and supporting these farmers on all aspects of crop management, from sowing to harvesting. This is a pillar of our business model. We produce a range of alkaloid products for the pharmaceutical industry, and also produce poppy seeds, which are used extensively in many bakeries for breads and pastries. We have also recently entered cannabis production.

Which countries and clients are most interested in your goods and services?

We try to have a diversified customer-base to protect the company. Normally, we have one major customer per country, and we try to be our customer's partner and work closely with them to meet their requirements. Our main markets are the UK, the US, France, and Spain. We also export to India, Hong Kong, and Vietnam, as well as markets across Europe, South America, and Africa.

What is the legal framework for medical cannabis in Spain?

As a pharmaceutical product, it is a controlled substance with a clear framework in place for gaining regulatory approval. In fact, one product, Sativex, has already been approved. Various forms of cannabis-based products have already been approved in several countries across Europe, and Spain will follow suit sooner rather than later.