Pharmabiz
 

Mumbai expo to empower Indian pharma industry

AD Pradeep KumarThursday, November 27, 2014, 08:00 Hrs  [IST]

The recent changes in the political landscape of India have given a new  ray of hope to all sectors of the Indian industry. This  will have its resonance in  the pharma sector too. The largest and most comprehensive pharmaceutical industry event in South Asia, CPhI  India, which  is taking place from  December  2 to 4, 2014 in Mumbai will not only give a further push to the already growing Indian pharma industry but also will buttress the Brand India campaign aimed to help the Indian industry scale newer peaks in the global pharma firmament.

India is today one of the top emerging markets in the global pharmaceutical scene. The India pharmaceutical industry continues to grow each year, cementing its stature as the ‘Pharmacy of the World’. The sector is highly knowledge-based and its steady growth is positively affecting the Indian economy. The organised nature of the Indian pharmaceutical industry is attracting global majors that are finding it viable to increase their operations in the country.

The Indian pharmaceutical market is growing at 13 per cent annually, twice the world market growth rate offering great opportunities, especially in API,outsourcing, generics, and biosimilars.

India is increasingly becoming the focal point of the pharma industry for high quality, low cost pharma solutions, having expanded from only supplying simple formulations to actively focusing on delivery complex formulations, highly potent compounds and biosimilars, demonstrating the dynamic ability to continually adapt and evolve its offering, moving up the pharmaceutical value chain.

While its generics market is growing strong, it is also evolving into a cradle for new drugs. As one of the strongest emerging markets in the global pharma industry, India presents great opportunities for all international pharmaceutical companies to explore and benefit from.

Historically, the Indian pharmaceutical market has been developed around the manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Now, the main driving force behind India pharma’s growth is an expansion in the number of cGMP facilities and generics exports. India is now focusing on delivering complex formulations, highly potent compounds and biosimilars. For instance, 90 per cent of formulation approvals for anti-retroviral (ARVs) , anti-tubercular and anti-malarial (WHO pre-qualified) have been granted to India. Moreover, India produces 40-70 per cent of the WHO demand for DPT & BCG and 90 per cent of measles vaccine.

The India excipient market is increasingly growing and experts have predicted that it would outpace Western markets both in the near and long term future.

The main driver of excipient consumption growth is the thriving finished dosage industry that continues to expand in India. Whilst some finished dosage suppliers are using imported products, it is a great benefit to be able to source excipients within the local market. Moreover Indian excipients are increasingly being reputed to be of a higher quality than some of the lower cost rivals.

The growth of the Indian pharmaceutical industry is a success story on its own. While the value of production of pharmaceuticals was only U.S.$ 0.3 billion in 1980,it rose to U.S.$ 20 billion by 2012 registering an average annual growth of more than 10 per cent. Growth of the domestic market was triggered by  strong economic growth in the country resulting in increase in buying power, higher penetration into semi-urban and rural markets, the emergence of health insurance programmes, awareness of healthcare problems  and needs among the population and national programmes for control of many diseases through prophylaxis and therapeutics, development of infrastructure at all levels, availability of skilled  human resources etc.

What is even more impressive is the fact that over 45 per cent of the production of pharmaceuticals in India, is  being exported which includes APIs as well as formulations and that too even to the most regulated markets including the US and Western Europe.

India has the largest number of US FDA approved manufacturing units, Abbreviated New Drug Applications (ANDAs), approved Drug Master Files (DMFs) with the US FDA, by companies outside the US. The Indian industry’s manufacturing plants and several APIs and formulations are approved  by global regulatory agencies such as the MHRA(UK), TGA (Australia), MCC (South Africa), Canada and a host of countries in Asia, Eastern & Western Europe, Africa and Latin America.  

Top Indian companies are now engaged in new drug discovery and development research. Investments in R&D especially for new drug discovery research has increased over the years and in 2013, the quantum of investments was over Rs 3000 crores (US$ 500 million) which is less than that spent by the 15th ranked MNC in the global list of R&D based companies.

While according to the Deloitte 2014 Global Life Sciences Outlook report, India’s pharmaceutical sales, worth US $ 22.6 billion in 2012, is expected to register 27 per cent growth to reach US $ 27 billion  by 2016, according to a study by global management and consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, India's pharmaceutical sector will touch US$ 45 billion by 2020.

“India’s pharmaceutical sales were $22.6 billion in 2012.  They are expected to rise to $23.6 billion in 2013 and reach $27 billion in 2016. As a per cent of health care expenditures, pharmaceutical sales were 22.6 per cent in 2012; they are expected to reach 23.6 per cent in 2013 and  27 per cent by 2016,” says the Deloitte report.

According to the McKinsey report, in the period 2002-2012, the country's healthcare sector grew three times in size, touching US$ 70 billion from US$ 23 billion. India's pharmaceutical market experienced a similar boom, reaching US$ 18 billion in 2012 from US$ 6 billion in 2005. The report further states that the Indian pharmaceutical market will be the sixth largest in the world by 2020.

“The worldwide demand for cost-effective generic drugs is leading India to rise as a hub of generic drug manufacturing. India accounts for over 10 per cent of global pharmaceutical production, with over 60,000 generic brands across 60 therapeutic categories; it manufactures more than 400 different APIs. The country is the front-runner in a wide range of specialties involving the manufacture of complex drugs,” the Deloitte report says.

The rise of pharmaceutical outsourcing and investments by multinational companies (MNCs), allied with the country's growing economy, committed health insurance segment and improved healthcare facilities, is expected to drive the market's growth.

India currently exports drug intermediates, Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Finished Dosage Formulations (FDFs), Bio-Pharmaceuticals, and Clinical Services across the globe. The exports of pharmaceuticals from India grew to US$ 14.6 billion in 2012-13 from US$ 6.23 billion in 2006-07, registering a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 15.2 per cent.

The allowance of foreign direct investment (FDI) in India's pharma sector has been well received by foreign investors. According to data released by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), the drugs and pharmaceutical sector attracted FDI worth Rs 60,100.91 crore (US$ 9.94 billion) between April 2000 and June 2014.

The growth in Indian domestic market will be boosted by increasing consumer spending, rapid urbanisation, increasing healthcare insurance and so on. The lifestyle segments such as cardiovascular, anti-diabetes, anti-depressants and anti-cancers will continue to be lucrative and fast growing owing to increased urbanisation and change in lifestyle patterns.

The world over , governments are  taking several cost-effective measures in order to bring down healthcare expenses by introduction of generic drugs. This too will benefit Indian pharma companies.

As the global pharma industry is increasingly looking towards India for high quality, low cost pharma solutions, CPhI India being held  at  Bombay Convention and Exhibition Centre , Mumbai is the perfect place for companies to pick up the latest trends and innovations ; meet the movers and shakers in India's pharma machinery, technology, ingredients, outsourcing and biopharma industry.

CPhI India (Convention on Pharmaceuticals Ingredients), founded in 1990 as an international chemical and pharmaceutical exhibition, has evolved as the most important exhibition for the pharmaceutical industry with over 28,000 attendees and more than 900 exhibitors from nearly100 countries. Today it combines all major suppliers and customers in the chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing.

As a one-stop-shop for all pharma, this is the place to be seen in front of the entire pharma industry from India and abroad India brings pharma professionals from all over the world to Mumbai and facilitates initiating and closing business deals.

This year, CPhI and GBR have collaborated to produce the first comprehensive review of the pharma market, which examines how the country is playing a major role in the global pharmaceuticals industry. The full version of the report, India Pharmaceuticals 2014 Industry Explorations, will be released at CPhI India and will be distributed free of charge to all registered visitors and exhibitors both in India and other global CPhI events throughout 2015.

All visitors  will be encouraged to use the CPhI India mobile app to seamlessly navigate the event and make best use of their time.

The functionality allows for the designing of the  ideal personalised agenda throughout the show and includes the full schedule and latest exhibitor lists. It provides interactive maps and company profiles, helping visitors to harness their time in the most productive manner. They can even voice opinions on the industry through your mobile device and expand  professional network.

Earlier this year, CPhI announced its collaboration with charity partner Global Angels at CPhI Worldwide in Paris. Focusing its work across Africa and Asia, Global Angels aims to deliver tangible results such as safe drinking water, healthcare and education to those who need it the most.

As India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and a leading supplier of generics globally, making CPhI India the perfect place to keep up to date on the latest trends and innovations that the pharma market has to offer. CPhI offers copious opportunities to meet major decision-makers, prospective clients and explore potential partnerships with key industry companies, say the organizers of the event.

Moreover, with pharma companies increasingly looking to outsource manufacturing and explore new ways to lower costs whilst maintaining the higher quality products is a key reason why CPhI India is a key event locally and globally. It aims to bring the industry leaders together under one roof to set new standards and take the industry to the next level, they add.

Last year was the biggest ever CPhI India event which saw  a record participation of over 27,000 attendees and more than 1045 exhibitors from 94 countries. The event was  successful and the organizers aim to equally match and build upon these achievements this year.

 
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