Kansas City is the bustling center of the global animal health industry and regarded as the world’s best place to advance new technologies and solutions to solve global issues.
KC Animal Health Corridor harnesses technology, innovation and workforce development to lead the global animal health industry forward.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City is the bustling center of the global animal health industry and regarded as the world’s best place to advance new technologies and solutions to solve global issues.
Today, with more than 300 animal health companies in the KC Animal Health Corridor, Kansas City is at the epicenter of the largest concentration of animal health companies and service providers in the world. Since inception of the Corridor in 2006, more than 60 new companies have relocated to the region and many existing companies have continued to invest and expand.
“The KC Animal Health Corridor is the best place to start and grow an animal health business,” said Kimberly Young, President of the Kansas City Animal Health Corridor. “There is nowhere else in the world where an animal health company could go to have instant and easy access to the expertise, resources and support that can be found in our region.”
Some of the world’s biggest and most innovative animal health businesses are located in the KC Animal Health Corridor that stretches from Columbia, Mo. and St. Joseph, Mo. to Manhattan, Kan. These companies represent 56 percent of total worldwide animal health, diagnostics and pet food sales.
More than 1,000 global animal health leaders will gather in Kansas City for Global Animal Health Week (Aug. 17-23) to discuss major market trends, workforce development, public policy and innovation shaping the global animal health industry.
“The Corridor fosters an ecosystem to ensure success of animal health companies by supporting entrepreneurs who are pushing forward new technologies and solutions to solve global issues, growing the qualified pipeline of talent, and advocating for public policy,” said KC Animal Health Corridor Chairman Scott Bormann, Vice President, North America, Merck Animal Health. “Global Animal Health Week provides global leaders with an opportunity to work together, collaboratively, to move the industry forward.”
A few significant milestones among Corridor companies over the last year include:
- Argenta announced the addition of two key senior level appointments at the Argenta Research facility in Lawrence, Kan. These key appointments will allow Argenta to ramp up services to its customers in the U.S. and globally.
- Simmons Pet Food, a leading North American private-label and contract manufacturer of wet and dry pet food and treats invested $38 million in an expansion of its Flexible Packaging Facility in Emporia, Kan.
- Kangen Pharmaceuticals acquired KC Specialty Therapeutics and announced it would retain operations in Kansas City, Kan. This acquisition has allowed KC Specialty Therapeutics a strategic position and expanded value with partners in Japan.
Since 2006, growth among Corridor companies has created thousands of new jobs, more than $200 million in new payroll and more than $1 billion in new capital investment in the region.
“The KC Animal Health Corridor offers a world-class network of industry professionals who are influencing the future of animal health across the world,” Young said. “We look forward to continuing to move the industry forward for decades to come.”
Global Animal Health Week events include Fetch, a leading veterinary conference; a Market Insight Seminar; annual KC Animal Health Corridor Homecoming dinner; and an Investment Forum. The Homecoming dinner draws more than 1,000 people from across the world to Kansas City and is one of the most exclusive gatherings of CEOs and industry leaders worldwide.
A dozen emerging animal health companies from around the world will compete Aug. 21 during the 10th annual KC Animal Health Investment Forum, a “Shark Tank” format with more than 400 venture capital funds, investment firms and potential partners. Since 2010, companies presenting at the Forum have raised nearly $300 million, and many have signed licensing and distribution deals.
About the KC Animal Health Corridor Companies with a business location in the KC Animal Health Corridor account for more than half of the sales generated by the global animal health industry. The Corridor, anchored by Manhattan, Kansas, and Columbia, Missouri, is home to more than 300 animal health companies, representing the largest concentration in the world. For more information, visit www.kcanimalhealth.com.
