A Baton Rouge-based biotech company has switched gears from making topical dermatology products to making hand sanitizer and other disinfectants to address the local shortage of those products from COVID-19.

Owen Biosciences Inc. started producing hand sanitizer and disinfectants 10 days ago, shifting 20% of its manufacturing output to the products last week, says Dane Lejeune, senior vice president for Owen. Now, as the company has seen orders for topical dermatology products decline, it’s shifting 50% to 75% of its manufacturing output to the in-demand products.