Granulab, a 70%-owned subsidiary of KPower has today launched “ProsteomaxTM”, Malaysia’s halal-certified synthetic bone cement.
The launch was officiated by the Deputy Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Yang Berhormat Datuk Haji Ahmad Amzad Hashim at Granulab’s manufacturing plant in Kota Kemuning, Shah Alam, Selangor.
ProsteomaxTM, an innovative calcium phosphate-based synthetic bone cement has been certified Halal by Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM) and registered with Malaysian Medical Device Authority for orthopaedics, cranio, dental and maxillofacial applications.
KPower’s Group CEO, Amirul said, “We first ventured into the healthcare and technology space in January 2021 with the acquisition of 70% equity stake in Granulab from SIRIM Tech Venture Sdn. Bhd., a subsidiary of SIRIM Berhad, to participate in the fast-growing healthcare industry. We seek to accelerate KPower’s involvement in this sector by acquiring an established company with the requisite licenses and certifications and support from SIRIM with a unique Halal angle. Granulab’s existing products are the first of many healthcare products from the Group as we look to leverage on the licenses, its resources and its capabilities even further.”
“In addition to this, the accelerated growth of the global Halal market which is not only confined to the food and beverage industry, but also extends to the financial sector, agriculture, medical, consumer goods, and cosmetics amongst others also presents us with numerous opportunities as a result of the increasing demand for Halal medical technologies.”
“Looking at this, it is only prudent for us to focus our initial marketing efforts of our Halal-certified products in Muslim-majority countries such as Indonesia, Middle East and Central Asia. Having said that, our Halal-certified products do not deter us to also cater to non-Muslim consumers especially as the demand for Halal-certified products amongst this demographic is also gradually increasing. We look forward to strengthen our presence within the non-Muslim consumer market in the foreseeable future.”
The global Halal market is predicted to reach US$9.71 trillion by 2025, according to the “State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2018/19” by Thomson Reuters, with nations like Malaysia expected to lead the pack in the coming years.
Concurrently, the Group also anticipates an increase in demand for bone cements due to a few factors specifically the increase in global population, increase in road-traffic accidents as well as increase in the ageing population that requires medical interventions. In Malaysia, it was estimated that 3.5 million of its population was above the age of 65 years old in 2021 whereas 25% of Singapore’s population is estimated to be above 65 years old by 2030. Globally, meanwhile, it was estimated that 1.5 billion of the world’s population will be above 65 years of age by 2050, according to the United Nation’s World Population Ageing 2019 report.
Granulab, a Bio-Nexus status company, is also the manufacturer of the granular synthetic bone graft “GranuMaS®”, the Halal synthetic bone graft product in Malaysia. GranuMas® is a form of hydroxyapatite bone graft with composition and properties identical to human bone mineral, commonly used as an innovative alternative material in surgeries requiring bone grafting procedures.
Granulab had filed patents in a few countries and the patents have also been granted in Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, USA, Germany, and France. Granulab is also the holder of various certifications locally and internationally, amongst them are the MDA Establishment License and Good Distribution Practice of Medical Devices (GDPMD) License from Medical Device Authority Malaysia as well as the CE Mark Certification and ISO 13485 from BSI, Netherlands.
