Our Company - Keraplast

Our Journey

History

Kerapast was born from groundbreaking scientific research that began on opposite sides of the world.

Let’s travel back to 1996, Mississippi in the United States. During his surgical practice, Dr Robert Allen Smith observed the unusual properties of keratin materials, such as hair. From these observations and pioneering medical research, he showed the potent wound healing properties of keratin protein, leading to the foundation of Keraplast in 1996.

Jump to New Zealand, 2001 – With support from the New Zealand wool industry, Keratec began groundbreaking research to identify industrial processes for functional Keratin proteins’ isolation and commercialisation of these discoveries.

When Keraplast from the USA & Keratec from New Zealand met in the early 2000s, a strong partnership evolved. This resulted, several years later, in the merging of the businesses into one entity with an international patent portfolio of over 130 individual patents in 36 patent families.

Production is centred in Christchurch, New Zealand, a recognised hub of excellence in agricultural research allied with Lincoln University.

New Zealand sourced wool is shorn sustainably from sheep at the start of each Kiwi summer, ensuring the sheep survive the summer heat while growing a new coat in time to be well protected for winter.

For the past 20 years, Keraplast has manufactured branded ingredients for distribution amongst the world’s leading health, nutrition and personal care companies. Our innovative technology and extensive body of research have led us to become the world’s leading innovator of keratin protein technology.

Evolution

Keraplast — with collective ambition and innovation, we will approach the future curiously, pushing ourselves forward whilst contributing to something larger than ourselves, something that truly matters — enhancing the future of food and wellness.

We are ambitious to disrupt and make a real difference in people’s lives; we care about people and wish to support and empower everyone to live well. Therefore, we are on a mission to create life-changing ingredients for life-changing products.

We will do this while safekeeping our place — it’s where we are from; we’re close to our product, which keeps us close to our land. So it’s time for us to actively collaborate and engage with like-minded organisations to benefit New Zealand on the world stage.

Our journey is only just beginning. Whether we are looking at our company’s past 20 years or our country’s past 2000 years, we will respect where we have come from while keeping our focus on the future.

Sustainability

Giving back more than we take…

Keraplast’s long-term vision is to be a regenerative business, giving back more than we take.

We will do this while safekeeping our place — it’s where we are from; we’re close to our product, which keeps us close to our land. So it’s time for us to actively collaborate and engage with like-minded organisations to benefit New Zealand on the world stage.

Our journey is only just beginning. Whether we are looking at our company’s past 20 years or our country’s past 2000 years, we will respect where we have come from while keeping our focus on the future.

“Regenerative strategies cannot be based on one-size-fits-all solutions but are necessarily targeted to the specific characteristics of the social-ecological systems with which business organisations interact”

Hahn and Tampe, 2021

What we stand for.

Our Purpose

To create benefits that improve the wellbeing of both society and the environment

Our Vision

To be the global leader in health and wellness enhancing keratin products

Our Mission

To develop innovative, ethical keratin ingredients that are evidence based and sustainably manufactured

Our Values

A Passion for New Zealand
We have a big ambition for a better New Zealand & actively collaborate & engage with like minded organisations for the benefit of New Zealand on the world stage.
Creative & Innovative
We approach the world curiously, looking for new solutions & pushing ourselves to continuously improve.
Sustainable & Accountable business
We are here for the long term, in business & in our communities. We’re brave enough to do what’s right, not just what’s easy.
Respect, Honesty & Integrity
We celebrate greatness, we speak plainly & we match our actions with our words.

Keraplast is proud to be a certified living wage employer.

Meet The Team

Our team at Keraplast is driven by a shared passion for innovation and sustainability. From our Functional Keratin® scientists—who bring over two decades of keratin research—to our regenerative farming specialists and client support experts, each member is committed to delivering bioactive ingredients of unparalleled purity and efficacy. We pride ourselves on long-term partnerships grounded in trust, transparency, and a collective dedication to doing more good for people and the planet.

Senior Executive Team