What Alcaliber does

Alcaliber, S.A.U. is a privately held Spanish pharmaceutical manufacturer founded in 1973 and headquartered in Madrid, with manufacturing operations in Toledo and Albacete. The company operates a vertically integrated production model spanning poppy cultivation, extraction of narcotic raw materials (NRMs), and manufacturing of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs). Its product portfolio centers on alkaloid-based APIs including codeine, morphine, oxycodone, ethylmorphine, pholcodine, dihydrocodeine, diacetylmorphine and noscapine — supplied as Concentrated Poppy Straw (CPS) derivatives or finished APIs — alongside a growing cannabis-derived API and bulk product line authorized since 2016. The company also produces approximately 9,000 tons of poppy seeds annually for the bakery and confectionery industry, and offers CDMO services covering extraction, synthesis (including O-acetylations, hydrogenations, and demethylations), milling, micronization, drying and dosing.

Alcaliber's technical platform is built around proprietary advanced percolation extraction technology (implemented 2014), dual organic solvent and CO2 extraction capabilities, EU-GMP-certified manufacturing areas with a Grade D cleanroom added in 2023, and a purification reactor capacity exceeding 6,000 m³. Operations are regulated under multiple frameworks: Spanish Health Authority licenses for narcotic and cannabis production, EU-GMP Part II-ICH Q7 for alkaloids and cannabinoids, GMP Part I for cannabinoid finished products, FDA certification for agricultural operations, and regular inspections by AEMPS, ANVISA and KDFA. The agricultural network comprises approximately 400 farmers cultivating 6,000-10,000 hectares in Spain annually.

Commercially, Alcaliber operates a B2B direct sales model with quote-based pricing, targeting global pharmaceutical manufacturers requiring controlled-substance APIs and intermediates, as well as food industry buyers for poppy seeds. Distribution is exclusively direct with no public-facing e-commerce. The company is structured as a single-member public limited company (Sociedad Anónima Unipersonal) with a wholly owned R&D subsidiary (Alcaliber Investigación, Desarrollo e Innovación), and is led by a management team with prior tenure at large pharmaceutical companies including MSD, Sanofi, Aventis, and Insud Pharma.

Name

Alcaliber

Legal name

ALCALIBER, S.A.U.

Website

https://alcaliber.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Alcaliber is a privately held Spanish pharmaceutical manufacturer founded in 1973 that operates a vertically integrated model from poppy cultivation to Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient production, supplying alkaloid-based APIs (codeine, morphine, oxycodone), cannabis-derived APIs, and poppy seeds to global pharmaceutical and food industry customers under EU-GMP and FDA certifications.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pharmaceutical Manufacturing

NAICS

Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing (3254), Medicinal and Botanical Manufacturing (325411)

SIC

Medicinal Chemicals & Botanical Products (2833), Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834), Chemicals & Allied Products (2800)

akta.pro primary industry

Controlled Substances / DEA-Scheduled API Manufacturing (HLAGAHAD)

Keywords

• Active pharmaceutical ingredients
• Narcotic raw materials
• Pharmaceutical manufacturing
• Opium alkaloid production
• CDMO pharmaceutical services

Headquarters

HQ city

Madrid

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

Alcaliber is a pharmaceutical manufacturer that produces Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and Narcotic Raw Materials (NRMs) from poppy through an integrated chain spanning agricultural cultivation (~6,000–10,000 hectares, ~400 farmers) to finished APIs. Its offerings include CPS Morphine, Codeine, Thebaine, Oripavine and Noscapine, a broad API portfolio (Codeine Phosphate, Morphine Sulphate, Oxycodone, Pholcodine, etc.), pharmaceutical-grade cannabis derivatives, poppy seeds for food, and CDMO solutions.

Product overview

Alcaliber is a pharmaceutical company with over 50 years of experience cultivating, manufacturing, and marketing alkaloid-based products. The company operates an integrated production model spanning from cultivation to Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs). Its core product portfolio consists of four main areas: NRMs (Narcotic Raw Materials) including CPS Morphine, Codeine, Thebaine, Oripavine, and Noscapine; APIs such as Codeine Phosphate Hemihydrate, Morphine Sulphate, Oxycodone Hydrochloride, and others; Cannabis products including APIs and pharmaceutical bulk products; and Poppy Seeds for the food industry. Additionally, the company offers CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization) services to third parties, providing chemical and physical manufacturing processes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NRM (Narcotic Raw Materials) Concentrated Poppy Straw (CPS) Narcotic Raw Materials — CPS Morphine, CPS Codeine, CPS Thebaine, CPS Oripavine and CPS Noscapine — derived from poppy extracts and supplied to pharmaceutical manufacturers of controlled substances.
• Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) Portfolio of alkaloid-based APIs including Codeine Phosphate Hemihydrate, Codeine Hydrochloride, Codeine Base, Codeine Camphorsulfonate, Morphine Hydrochloride, Morphine Sulphate, Diacetylmorphine Hydrochloride, Diacetylmorphine Base, Ethylmorphine Hydrochloride, Pholcodine, Dihydrocodeine Hydrogen Tartrate, Oxycodone Hydrochloride and Noscapine, available with ASMF/CEP certification status where applicable.
• Pharmaceutical Cannabis Products Pharmaceutical-grade cannabis products including APIs, extracts, oils and isolated products derived from cannabis for medical use, produced at a dedicated cannabis API production site under EU-GMP.
• Poppy Seeds Poppy seeds for the bakery and confectionery industries, with annual production of approximately 9,000 tons, making Alcaliber one of the world's major producers.
• CDMO Solutions Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization services covering extraction to synthesis of new products, including solid-liquid and liquid-liquid extraction, O-acetylations, O-alkylations, demethylations, hydrogenations, milling, micronization, drying, homogenization and dosing, offered to third-party pharmaceutical companies.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% supply chain traceability from fields to pharmaceutical products
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Noramco: Noramco is a global leader in controlled-substance API manufacturing (narcotic raw materials, opiates, stimulants), making it the most direct comparable to Alcaliber's NRM and controlled-substance API business.
• Lonza Group: Lonza is a leading global CDMO with API manufacturing capabilities, including controlled substances, directly comparable to Alcaliber's CDMO and API business.
• Alcami Corporation: Alcami provides API development, manufacturing, and CDMO services for small molecules including controlled substances, comparable to Alcaliber's API and CDMO offerings.
• Tasmanian Alkaloids: Tasmanian Alkaloids (owned by Sun Pharma) cultivates poppies and produces alkaloid APIs, directly comparable to Alcaliber's vertically integrated poppy-to-NRM/API model.
• Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals: Mallinckrodt operates one of the world's largest poppy-derived alkaloid businesses (via its SpecGx subsidiary) and is a major supplier of controlled-substance APIs, directly comparable to Alcaliber's core business.
• Siegfried Holding: Siegfried is a Swiss-headquartered API manufacturer with CDMO services for controlled and non-controlled substances, comparable in scope and customer base to Alcaliber.
• Cambrex: Cambrex is a pure-play small-molecule API manufacturer offering CDMO and generic API services, comparable to Alcaliber's API manufacturing and CDMO offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Sanofi: Sanofi is a major pharmaceutical manufacturer that both produces and consumes APIs (including opiates) and shares customer overlap with Alcaliber's B2B pharma customer base.
• Sun Pharmaceutical Industries: Sun Pharma is one of the world's largest generic API manufacturers and owns Tasmanian Alkaloids, making it a broad incumbent with overlapping controlled-substance API exposure.
• Johnson Matthey: Johnson Matthey's Health division supplies APIs and catalysts to pharmaceutical customers globally; while broader in scope, its API offerings overlap with Alcaliber's controlled-substance and specialty API portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/alcaliber-s-a-

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Alcaliber