About 75 Ayurvedic units in Kerala have already complied with the Good Manufacturing Practices under the Schedule T of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act notified by the Ministry of Health in 2000. Of this, eight units are large scale and the remaining is in the small-scale segment.

According to Dr. D. Ramanathan, General Secretary, Ayurvedic Medicine Manufacturers Organisation of India (AMMOI), there is an increased momentum among the small-scale units to adopt the standardisation process now in the state. "Taking into account the huge potential for Ayurveda in the healthcare sector worldwide, the Ayurvedic medicine manufacturers are now gearing up to meet the stringent quality requirements," he added.

In Kerala, there are about 760 Ayurvedic manufacturing units and the total volume for Ayurveda products in the state is pegged currently at Rs.200 crore. However, the exports have not been high enough from the state.

Dr. Ramanathan, Managing director of the Rs 8 crore Sitaram Ayurveda Pharmacy, says that the modernization and quality upgradation drive has had a positive impact on the export performance of the units in the state, so also in the country. "The total export earnings from Ayurvedic drugs stood at Rs.300 crore a couple of years back. Today it has increased to Rs.750 crore," he adds. However, the export earnings are likely to touch Rs.5000 crore by 2005 as many of the units in Kerala have been able to increase their exports in the last two years. Sitaram Ayurveda Pharmacy, an ISO 9001 company is one of the eight GMP complied large-scale Ayurvedic units in the sate.

"Kerala has been in the forefront of Ayurveda and the modernization and quality upgradation drive is sure to see the state, and the units located here, going up the ladder. "It has become evident that Ayurveda is not just restricted to the country. The upgradation drive is being undertaken mainly due to the realization that there is a huge export potential for Ayurvedic drugs from the state. The increasing number of units going in for the same has only shown that the urge to tap the export market has also been increasing," Dr. Ramanathan maintained, stating further that most of the units in Kerala while going in for the GMP norms have not deviated from their traditional manufacturing practice.

Dr. Ramanthan further added that China has been able to dominate the herbal market mainly because it had introduced GMP norms and better quality standards much earlier than India. "However there is a huge market for herbal medicines. Indian companies will be able to do better in the coming years," he reiterated.