Members of the Alliance for Building Better Medicine, comprising a coalition of public and private sector stakeholders from Richmond-Petersburg, celebrated the opening of a new Metric Ton-Scale cGMP (current Good Manufacturing Practices) facility by Phlow Corporation in Petersburg, VA. Phlow is the first pharmaceutical manufacturer in America to earn B Corporation™ (B Corp™) certification. The company was founded by Eric Edwards, MD, PhD, and Dr. Frank Gupton, CEO of VCU’s Medicines for All Institute. During the opening event, Edwards and Gupton, who are both members of the Alliance, spoke to a crowd of over 100 attendees about their mission to re-imagine and re-shore domestic production of critical ingredients and finished drug products essential for sustaining life and combating disease.

Together with partners Civica Rx, VCU’s Medicines for All Institute, and AMPAC Fine Chemicals, Phlow chose Petersburg to establish its state-of-the-art infrastructure aimed at creating a reliable supply of safe, high-quality, and affordable medicines for all. In an unprecedented collaborative effort, public and private stakeholders have swiftly built next-generation facilities in Petersburg and Richmond, ensuring domestic supply chain resiliency and reliability for life-changing medicines. The shared successes and milestones achieved in the region have attracted additional leaders in life sciences and pharmaceutical manufacturing to consider expanding their facilities in the Richmond-Petersburg area.

In recognition of the bold thinking and tenacity of industry leaders committed to building better medicine in Petersburg, Governor Youngkin, Secretary Merrick, and Mayor Samuel Parham, alongside students from Virginia State University, unveiled a new brand for the area—Campus for Advanced Manufacturing of Pharmaceuticals in the United States (CAMPUS). The unveiling of the CAMPUS brand honors the thriving ecosystem that has emerged in Petersburg and officially names the region as it continues to attract other pharmaceutical leaders.