Author Archives: Animal Health

Small Market. Global Impact. – Why Kansas City Punches Above Its Weight in Animal Health

March is a season of momentum. Across Kansas City, the crack of the bat signals the start of Spring Training as the Kansas City Royals prepare for a new season. In pastures across our region, calving season is underway which is a powerful reminder of renewal, growth, and the steady work that sustains our food system.

Spring has a way of reminding us that progress doesn’t always start loud. It starts with preparation. With resilience. With showing up.

In many ways, Kansas City, like the animal health industry, has long been viewed as an underdog. We aren’t the largest metro in the country. Animal health isn’t the largest sector in global life sciences. But when you show up with enthusiasm, grit, creativity, and a collaborative spirit, people notice. And you win.

This summer, Kansas City will step onto the world stage as one of the host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. While we are the smallest U.S. market selected to host matches, four international teams (Argentina, England, Netherlands and Algeria) chose Kansas City as the location for their base camps.

Why?

Because we prepared. Because we listened. Because we curated experiences that met each team’s specific needs.

They saw what we already know: Kansas City is a metro that offers high-caliber amenities, ease of access, strong infrastructure, and a community that rallies around those who choose to be here. In Kansas City, you’re never just another stop on the map; you are part of something connected, intentional, and supportive.

Those same dynamics play out every day in business, particularly in animal health. For animal health companies and innovators to succeed, they need more than lab space and capital. They need a community that understands the regulatory complexity, manufacturing realities, commercialization pathways, and scientific rigor required to bring solutions to market.

They need partners. They need talent. They need infrastructure. And that’s exactly why the Animal Health Corridor exists.

The Corridor was designed specifically to help companies start, scale, and thrive. We work alongside local, state, and educational partners to ensure the right academic programs are in place building talent pipelines from manufacturing and quality control to regulatory affairs and commercial leadership.

Globally, animal health may not command the same headlines as human biopharma. But its impact touches every person on the planet. Animal health safeguards the food supply. It strengthens biosecurity. It combats zoonotic diseases before they become global crises. It advances care for pets that enrich our lives.

The work done here in the Heartland ripples outward: protecting families, supporting farmers, and strengthening public health systems worldwide.

Much like Kansas City itself, animal health’s influence far exceeds its size. There’s something powerful about being underestimated. It can breed focus, fuel creativity and build resilience. Kansas City doesn’t try to out scale the largest metros; we out prepare them.

Animal health companies in this region operate the same way. They innovate with urgency because the stakes are high. They work across disciplines because success requires integration. They build long-term because the health of animals and people depends on it.

Spring reminds us that growth is both natural and intentional. It requires the right environment, partners, and conditions. Kansas City has built those conditions, and the Animal Health Corridor sustains them.

As we move into this new season, whether in sports, in agriculture, in global competition, or in business, we are reminded you don’t have to be the biggest to make the biggest difference.

Sometimes the smallest markets and the most focused industries create the greatest global impact.

Gallant Announces First-of-Its-Kind Partnership with MWI Animal Health to Deliver Anticipated FDA-Conditionally Approved Stem Cell Therapy into Veterinary Clinics 

Agreement establishes first ultra-low temperature cold chain in veterinary medicine ahead of anticipated potential first FDA-approved, off-the-shelf stem cell therapy 

SAN DIEGO – (February 27, 2026) – Gallant, an animal health biotechnology company pioneering off-the-shelf stem cell therapies for pets, today announced a landmark fulfillment agreement with MWI Animal Health (MWI), part of global healthcare company Cencora, to create the first-ever ultra-low temperature cold chain for veterinary medicine. This comes as Gallant advances toward delivering the potential first-ever FDA-approved off-the-shelf veterinary stem cell therapy, pending conditional approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine (FDA-CVM). 

Together, the companies are laying the foundation for a new category of veterinary care. 

The first expected product from Gallant’s pipeline is sonruvetcel injectable suspension—a potential first-in-class, uterine-derived allogeneic mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) therapy for cats with refractory feline chronic gingivostomatitis (rFCGS). Partnership with MWI will enable reliable delivery of veterinary stem cell therapies requiring storage at -80°C. 

“Breakthrough science only matters if we can safely and reliably put it into the hands of veterinary professionals,” said Dr. Linda Black, DVM, Ph.D., CEO of Gallant. “With MWI, we are pairing regenerative medicine innovation with world class supply chain management. This partnership helps ensure that, once approved, veterinarians can conveniently access an FDA-regulated, off-the-shelf stem cell therapy with confidence in its quality and integrity.” 

“This partnership demonstrates how distribution innovation can unlock clinical innovation,” said Julia Loew, CCO at MWI Animal Health. “Stem cell therapies require precision handling. By investing in ultra-low temperature logistics tailored to veterinary practice, we are ensuring that this category of innovation can be delivered to clinics in the exact state intended, ready for safe and effective use.” 

Under the agreement, MWI will develop and deploy a scalable, ultra-low temperature fulfillment model. It will support nationwide availability through overnight shipping from MWI’s Edwardsville, Kansas, distribution center, helping to ensure access for clinics across the continental United States and in noncontiguous U.S. markets, including Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. 

The companies expect the partnership to serve as a model by establishing infrastructure that can support Gallant’s broader pipeline of disease-modifying therapies targeting inflammatory and degenerative conditions in companion animals. 

Expanding the Spectrum of Care 

Recent survey data conducted by Gallant, in collaboration with the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), found that nearly 95% of veterinary professionals believe stem cell therapy will become a standard treatment option within the next decade. 79% say they are likely to use or recommend stem cell therapy in the future, and 93% report they would be more likely to offer regenerative therapies in-house if they were off-the-shelf and delivered through a simple IV protocol. 

The Gallant–MWI partnership directly addresses veterinary professionals’ expectations and practice needs by pairing an anticipated FDA-regulated, donor-derived stem cell therapy with a clinic-friendly fulfillment model. 

About Gallant 

Gallant is an animal health biotechnology company creating a new category of veterinary medicine with a pipeline of off-the-shelf, ready-to-use stem cell therapies targeting the root causes of disease in pets. Led by pioneers in veterinary regenerative medicine with deep expertise in development, manufacturing and commercialization, Gallant is making regenerative medicine accessible to everyday practice. Learn more at www.gallant.com.