Danville pharma startup announces $6.1M expansion

Danville-based pharmaceutical engineering and manufacturing company Engineered BioPharmaceuticals Inc. will invest $6.1 million to expand from a business incubator into its first standalone manufacturing space, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Wednesday. The move is expected to create 34 jobs.

The company will expand from its current lab space at Dan River Business Development Center — a business incubator offering coworking, office and industrial light space and other services — into a manufacturing facility at 1 Ecomnets Way, which the company will use to produce its oral pharmaceutical dosing platforms.

“Thanks to innovators like Engineered BioPharmaceuticals, our commonwealth is advancing as a hub for cutting-edge technology and research in the life sciences industry,” Youngkin said in a statement. “The company’s start in a Virginia business incubator shines a spotlight on the importance of fostering an environment that supports startups and small businesses.

Established in 2011 in the Dan River Business Development Center, Engineered BioPharmaceuticals develops delivery and shelf-life stability technologies for pharmaceuticals, vaccines, nutraceuticals — supplements used for health purposes other than nutrition, like ginseng or omega-3 — and food and beverage products. The company also has developed its own therapeutic products. Its expansion will help the company commercialize its first such product, a plant-based, zero-calorie gummy. It’s designed to help diabetic people combat hyperglycemia, which is associated with the early stages of diabetes.

“The company chose to expand in Virginia due to the commonwealth’s overall business-friendly environment and its preeminent biotechnology presence,” Engineered BioPharmaceuticals President and CEO Carl Sahi said in a statement. “We also found Pittsylvania County and the city of Danville to be an ideal location because of their people, their economic development efforts and their support and commitment to workforce development.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with the city of Danville and the Southern Virginia Regional Alliance to secure the project, for which Virginia competed with California, New York and Texas. Youngkin approved a $150,000 grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund for Danville. Engineered BioPharmaceuticals is eligible to receive benefits from the Virginia Enterprise Zone Program, administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. VEDP will provide funding and services to support employee recruitment and training through its Virginia Jobs Investment Program (VJIP).