The Taiwan pharmaceutical industry can be divided into makers of Chinese herbal medicines and those who concentrate on Western medicines. Each sector has its own supply sources, manufacturing processes, and marketing channels. According to the latest statistics, Taiwan currently has 247 registered Chinese herbal medicine producers, among whom 66 are Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) manufacturers. More than 90% of Chinese herbal companies are small - or medium - sized enterprises with capitalization of less than US$ 2 million. There are also around 280 Western medicine manufacturers in Taiwan. Of this number, 31 focus on producing bulk pharmaceutical chemicals. Total production volume of Western medicine topped US $ 1.5 billion.
The industry''s major export markets have traditionally been Hong Kong and Japan. However, since the downturn caused by the Asian financial crisis, many firms art beginning to target other overseas markets. For example, the Taiwan Pharmaceutical industry Association has proposed a joint investment plan in Latin America with the help of the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC) overseas office for Latin America. Major local pharmaceutical firms, such as Standard, Yung Shin, and Shin Yuan, would construct US FDA complaint plants in one or more Latin American countries such as Guatemala. If the plan were successful, it could perhaps be repeated in Eastern Europe.
It is common practice in industrially advanced nations to have strict standards covering the level and quality of pharmaceuticals available. These regulations serve not only to protect consumer health, but also to protect domestic pharmaceutical industries. In light of Taiwan''s transformation into a modern industrialized nation, the government is actively moving to upgrade the industry by establishing new certification standards for drug manufacturing and processing. In addition to the increasingly accepted Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standard, there are Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) standards.
The capital - and technology intensive nature of the pharmaceutical industry makes it difficult for smaller firms to compete with large international conglomerates. R&D in the sector requires enormous amounts of investment that carries no guarantee of certainty or even high probability of success. In addition, firms on the island lag behind their Western counterparts in terms of technology levels. To survive, most Taiwanese pharmaceutical firms have long focuses on the production of generic drugs after the related patents expire, with many offering very similar product lines as a result.
The most glaring consequence of this situation is that no completely new drugs have been registered in Taiwan to date. There are, however, a few currently undergoing clinical trials that may have the potential to become the first registered new drugs developed on the island. These include Gwo Chyang Pharmaceutical''s agiogenesis inhibitor U-995, a cancer drug that prevents the growth of blood vessels that feed tumors, and PC2, a drug that restores the function of bone marrow within seven days after cancer treatment irradiation. PC2 is being developed by a strategic alliance partnership involving President Pharmaceutical, Kingdom Pharmaceutical, Biocare, Maywufa, and US-based Pharmagenesis.
Both drugs have their origins in Chinese herbal medicines. As governmental bodies around the world, including the United Nations World Health Organization, establish institutes and regulations focusing on alternative treatments, the once neglected domain of Chinese medicines may very well be able to boost the position of Taiwan pharmaceutical firms of pharmacology in which the island''s firms have an advantage over their Western counterparts.
R&D in Chinese herbal medicine is already picking up rapidly. Large firms such as Taiwan Sugar and Standard Chemical are entering the line, a trend that may spark strategic alliances and help generate financing for R&D. The industry associations with the help of China External Trade Development Council (CETRA), are taking active role in encouraging such cooperation. They have, for instance made an initial proposal to invest over NT$ 4 billion (US$ 0.12 billion) over a five-year span to develop and commercialize Chinese herbal medicines.
This ambitious proposal will target a variety of medicines for development, as well as fund the construction of warehousing facilities and three GMP certified plants around the island. The plan also includes creating joint ventures among domestic firms, establishing logistics centers, constructing databases, and conducting clinical tests. Regardless of whether this particular plan is ultimately implemented, industry analysts are certain that sector will see more cooperative ventures in the near future.
The author is the Managing Director of Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC), Liaison Office in India.