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The Taiwanese company TCI, founded in 1980, specializes in the development and contract manufacturing (CDMO) of dietary supplements and skincare products. It began as a trading company, moved into manufacturing in 2002 and from 2011 built its own ingredient-research capability. Today it operates as a full CDMO, working exclusively B2B: TCI does not sell its own consumer brands but develops and manufactures finished, ready-to-sell products for other companies — it is a maker of finished products, not a raw-material supplier.

 

Backed by more than 2,600 patents and trademarks, over 360 international innovation awards and its own clinical validation and proprietary delivery technologies, TCI serves nearly 1,000 brand clients across 68 countries and has developed more than 10,000 products to date.

 

TCI’s arrival in Spain is marked by the acquisition of a manufacturing facility in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat (Barcelona), which will become its first manufacturing and R&D base in Europe when production begins in May 2027. The project, with a total investment of approximately twenty million euros, will create skilled local jobs in what is designed to be one of the most intelligent and sustainable nutraceutical factories in Europe.

 

     

 

What products will be manufactured at the new Barcelona plant?

Dietary supplements in liquid sachet and functional jelly formats — for example, collagen and magnesium liquid shots, fibre jellies and many more. These are among the fastest-growing delivery formats in Europe, because consumers want supplements that are easy and pleasant to take every day. Importantly, what leaves our plant is the finished consumer product, formulated, filled and packaged, ready for our clients to put on the shelf. What makes them distinctive is the technology behind them. Our patented liposomal technology  — doubleNUTRI delivery system encapsulates both water-soluble and oil-soluble nutrients into micro-particles, significantly increasing how much of each nutrient the body actually absorbs — our clinical studies show increases of 67% for liquid collagen and 261.8% for liquid calcium compared with conventional formats. Alongside it, our upgraded doubleNUTRI ZerO₂ — vacuum degassing, UHT sterilization and nitrogen-flushed filling — keeps oxygen out at every step, so that sensitive active ingredients are protected from oxidation and the product stays stable without preservatives. The lines are designed for an annual capacity of more than 100 million sachets.

 

You also plan to conduct R&D at this new plant. What types of projects will be undertaken from Barcelona?

We will start with the research and development of dietary supplements that are inspired by our global consumer insights, fully compliant with European regulations, and tailored to what European consumers genuinely need. The site will include three laboratories dedicated to formulation development and product application. This is the part of TCI that people often do not expect from a manufacturer. Over the past decade alone we have invested more than €130 million in research and development: our own ingredient research, clinical trials and peer-reviewed publications underpin every product we make. That is the culture behind our slogan, “Let's Spark”: we invite our brand partners to bring us their boldest ideas, and we turn them into science-backed, market-ready products. Catalonia has world-class research, but a great deal of it never reaches the market. Turning science into products that people can actually buy — commercialization — is exactly what TCI does best. Barcelona is where we will bring that strength to Europe: taking bold ideas, and our partners' ideas, all the way from the laboratory to the shelf.

 

Why did you choose Barcelona for your first plant in Europe?

Barcelona has a strong life-science sector that gathers many of the nutraceutical industry's key players, from ingredient suppliers to world-renowned brands. The fact that Vitafoods Europe, our industry's most important annual gathering, moved to Barcelona after more than two decades in Geneva proves the point. In the future, when our clients come to Vitafoods, they will be able to reach our facility on foot in fifteen minutes, straight from the show floor to our production lines. That matters enormously in our business: trade shows generate leads, but the turning point comes when a client sees the factory with their own eyes. Barcelona is also a strategic logistics platform. Direct transatlantic services reach the U.S. East Coast in roughly two weeks, and manufacturing within the EU opens preferential routes to Latin America under the EU-Mercosur agreement, so the site supports our activities across the Atlantic as well as in Europe.

 

Before starting production and R&D, you need to get the acquired plant up and running. What is the planned investment?

The total investment is approximately €20 million. Roughly €9.5 million is allocated to advanced production machinery and equipment, UHT sterilization, oxygen-free filling and fully automated packaging lines and the remainder covers the acquisition of the 4,250 m² building and its transformation into a GMP-grade smart factory, with cleanrooms, three laboratories, offices and a client showroom. The facility will pursue ISO 22000, IFS and BRCGS certifications ahead of the start of production in May 2027, in line with the standards we operate across all our plants.

 

How many jobs will the manufacturing plant and R&D area create?

We will start by building a team of around 15 people in the first year, beginning with the local leadership team: a site director, and heads of quality, R&D, logistics, human resources, sales and project management. Further technical and production roles will follow as we approach the start of production, and recruitment will be prioritized locally. Because the plant is highly automated, these are qualified, technical positions rather than manual roles.

 

What is the role of Spain in the company's strategy?

Spain is where TCI is building what we intend to be the most advanced R&D and manufacturing base in our industry, an elite team working with AI-driven intelligence and a high degree of automation. Its role in our strategy is simple to state and ambitious to deliver: to enable brands from all over the world to manufacture in Spain and sell to the world. It is also our first owned production base in Europe, completing a network that already spans Asia and the Americas.

 

What longer-term investments do you have planned after the plant becomes operational?

Once the plant is operational, we plan to expand into additional product lines, and we are considering extending the site's scope to skincare R&D and production — an area where TCI has strong capabilities in Asia, including highly automated facial-mask and skincare manufacturing. Barcelona is designed to grow with our clients' needs across Europe and the Americas.

 

What was your experience like working with ICEX-Invest in Spain on this project?

Outstanding. Both ICEX-Invest in Spain and Acció have been enormously supportive throughout the process, from guidance on the regulatory framework and incentives to site selection. Without their help, it is hard to imagine that we could have found such an ideal location, and completed the acquisition, in barely a year. For an international investor arriving in a new market, that kind of institutional accompaniment makes a real difference — and it is one of the reasons we would encourage other Asian companies to look seriously at Spain.

 

Do you plan to collaborate with Spanish companies, universities, and other institutions?

Absolutely. In every region where we operate, TCI collaborates closely with universities, hospitals and research institutions on joint R&D and clinical studies. It is core to how we validate our science, and our ingredient research has resulted in dozens of peer-reviewed publications. We intend to do the same in Spain, working with Catalonia’s life-science ecosystem, its universities and research institutions, and drawing on the region's deep pool of scientific talent. We also expect to source locally wherever we can, from construction and facility services through to packaging and raw materials. Being a good corporate citizen matters to us beyond the factory gate. In Taiwan, TCI has run a marine conservation programme for seven years that has protected more than 37,000 sea turtle eggs, and an education programme supporting schools and villages in Africa. We will look for the right way to contribute to the community in L'Hospitalet as well.

 

Photos: TCI