Merck Animal Health to Expand Kansas Manufacturing Plant

Animal vaccines and pharmaceuticals producer Merck Animal Health is committing $100 million toward the expansion of its DeSoto, KS manufacturing plant, the company announced this week. During the project, the Merck division will improve production technology and add new capabilities to the site. 

“Our Merck Animal Health business is making great strides in building our business for the future. That means we need to ensure our place as a leader in animal health with a substantial and sustainable US facility footprint, which includes investment and expansion in our key facilities” said Pamela Stoops, executive director of the DeSoto site, in a statement. “As a leader in delivering innovative pharmaceuticals and vaccines to advance animal health and meet customer needs, this investment reflects our commitment in producing a range of animal health vaccines and pharmaceuticals for animal health diseases.”

Merck’s DeSoto plant manufactures vaccines for swine, cattle, and equine applications. The site includes large scale fermentation and cell culture, blending and filling assets, production capabilities for monoclonal antibodies for companion animals, and packaging operations. 

The company said it is also investing in similar projects at its manufacturing and distribution sites in Millsboro, DE, Ames, IA, Worthington, MN, and Elkhorn and Omaha in Nebraska. 

“We continually seek new ways to improve and enhance our production and manufacturing capacity at our facilities to meet the growing needs of our animal health customers,” Scott Bormann, senior vice president of North America Commercial Operations for Merck Animal Health, said in the release. “Our investment in DeSoto positions us for long-term growth and enables us to remain a valued partner to our loyal customers through reliability and responsiveness to their needs.”