Medicinal Botanical Company will Invest $6.5 Million in New Headquarters, R&D Facility
BALTIMORE, MD (June 26, 2017) –
Vitreon America, Inc. announced plans today to relocate its headquarters from Northern Virginia to Baltimore City in order to better partner with Maryland’s world-class medical and botanical research institutions. The company’s business model is based on a specialized plant database comprised of botanicals and phytochemicals that can be used in the creation of new medicines. The botanical research company anticipates creating 200 full-time jobs at their new Wicomico Street location over the next five years. In addition to relocating its headquarters, the company also plans to establish its laboratory, research center, and grow zones in Baltimore City in approximately 200,000 square-feet of space.
“Baltimore offers all the business, scientific, and medical attributes that we need in order to capitalize on the vast potential of this industry,” said Dr. J. Randall Hoggle, chairman of the board of Vitreon America, Inc.
“We are very pleased to welcome Vitreon America to Baltimore, with access to our highly-skilled workforce, top-rated universities and research institutions, and unparalleled reputation for innovation,” said Governor Larry Hogan. “This relocation, and the 200 new jobs it will create, is a win for Baltimore City and our entire state as we continue to make Maryland a better place to live, work, and raise a family.”
Founded in 2015, Vitreon has exclusively licensed Dr. James Duke’s plant database, which is believed to be one of the most extensive in the world. With this database, Vitreon has the ability to validate current botanical discovery research projects and assist biopharmaceutical companies with development of new novel plant-based pharmaceuticals utilizing Vitreon’s Botanicopeia™. Vitreon is hoping to capitalize on the tremendous growth in the plant-based pharmaceuticals market, which brought in $290 million in 2016 with projections to grow to $1.2 billion by 2025.
“We’re excited that Vitreon is relocating its global headquarters to Baltimore City,” said William H. Cole, president & CEO of the Baltimore Development Corporation. “Potential partnerships with 13 colleges and universities as well as two established bioparks makes Baltimore very attractive to companies in medical, biotechnology, and now botanical research and development. We wish Vitreon continued growth and success here.”
The Maryland Department of Commerce and the Baltimore Development Corp. are continuing to work with Vitreon on its relocation project. The company is eligible for the state’s Job Creation Tax Credit and One Maryland Tax Credit.
“Maryland has an outstanding reputation as a place of groundbreaking medical breakthroughs and discoveries, and the innovative research that Vitreon is doing to develop new plant-based medicines will be a great addition to our community,” said Mike Gill, Maryland Secretary of Commerce. “We look forward to continuing to work with Vitreon and connecting them to potential partners to ensure their success in Maryland.”
As part of the company’s move to Maryland, Vitreon will work closely with Morgan State University and provide its plant database and botanical research capabilities to the greenhouse on the university’s campus. Through a partnership with the Abell Foundation, the university’s greenhouse and botanical laboratory was recently re-supplied with state-of-the-art technologies that will facilitate identification and qualitative validation of novel plant-based compounds. Students and faculty at Morgan State University will partner with Vitreon scientists to investigate the medicinal properties and commercial applications of botanicals. The partnership with Morgan will optimize the federal government’s new agricultural and botanical sciences grant opportunities focused on these innovative research areas.
“We saw this as an opportunity to build on Morgan State University’s historic leadership in botany and support a new generation of scientists who can leverage the power of plants to secure research funding and create new knowledge,” said Abell Foundation President Robert C. Embry Jr. “Vitreon will catalyze that process with its plant database and ability to generate commercial applications.”
“This partnership, and the capabilities inherent with each of its members, will afford significant growth and advancement in research and training in STEM disciplines at the university,” said Dr. Joseph Whittaker, Morgan State University/Vitreon America, Inc. partnership lead professor. “Faculty and student collaborations with Vitreon scientists will not only expand MSU’s research capacity and skills inventory, but also foster cultivation of a unique, multi-disciplinary training environment that will support the state of Maryland in realizing its R&D potential.”
For more information about Vitreon America, visit
vitreon.com.
