A manufacturer of vitamins, minerals and other dietary supplements including the Nature Made brand, Pharmavite, opened its new $89.6 million, 330,000 square foot, manufacturing facility in Northeast Opelika Alabama Industrial Park, where it plans to employ 260 by the end of the year.

Mark Walsh, chief operating officer of Pharmavite , said the “Opelika facility is one of the largest vitamin, mineral and supplement manufacturing facilities built in the U.S. during the last 10 years. This facility is also the first dietary supplement manufacturing facility in Alabama, bringing a new industry to the state,” he added.

“Pharmavite has been a pioneer in this industry for more than 40 years. Our new facility in Opelika will help us continue our leadership role and supports our vision of people creating new products for better health worldwide, which is the mission we share with our parent company, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.,” said Doug MacLean, chief executive officer of Pharmavite. “We are grateful to everyone who contributed to the planning and building process for our new Opelika facility, and we look forward to a bright future for this community, our company, and the vitamin and supplement industry as a whole.”

Pharmavite says the U.S. dietary supplement industry has tripled in size since 1995 and is projected to grow at a similar annual pace through 2020. The company says the new facility is well-positioned to help it meet that need. Growth in the U.S. dietary supplements market has been driven by greater consumer awareness and usage of vitamins and supplements; according to the Nutrition Business Journal, 66 percent of American adults in 2010 used dietary supplements at least occasionally, up from 52 percent in 1999.

Gov. Robert Bentley said “Lee County has been nationally recognized as a great place to live, to work and to do business. Pharmavite fits into the state’s Accelerate Alabama Economic Development Plan, an effort to recruit businesses, retain them and help them excel.”