The Animal Health Division of the Himalaya Drug Company is gearing up for an aggressive market expansion. The division has been witnessing robust growth in markets of South East Asia and the Middle East. It is now working on products depending on the market requirement in the various regions.

"Our primary export markets are large parts of the Middle East and South-East Asia. Latin American countries like Costa Rica and Mexico are also thriving markets for our canine range", Praveen Kala, business head, Animal Health Division, the Himalaya Drug Company, told Pharmabiz.

The company has now introduced two products Himcal Vet and Himcal Pet taking the total number of products to 44 products and Stock Keeping Units (SKUs) to 53.

Himcal Vet is a calcium liquid food supplement. It contains calcium and phosphorus derived from natural sources and present in the product in the ratio of 1:2. It also contains Vitamin D 3, Shatavari (Asparagus Racemosa) and Jivanti (Laptadenia Reticulata). The product Himcal Pet has calcium and phosphorus in the ratio of 1: 0.8, the recommended ratio provided by AFFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officials).

In fact, Himalaya is the first company to have come out with a product in the animal health category that follows this new prescribed ratio as opposed to the more widely used calcium: phosphorus ratio of 1:2.

Normally the company launches around five products every year. For this quarter, it has three new product launches planned. These products will focus on areas like immuno modulation, energy and protein replacement in poultry ration and to check respiratory infection, informed Kala.

Liv 52 Protec, the animal prototype of its flagship product Liv 52, is the fastest growing product in the Animal Health division. It is also one of the top 10 products in the Indian veterinary medicine market in value terms. Currently, there are 80 employees in its animal health division inclusive of managers.

Veterinary market consisting of livestock, poultry, canine and aqua segment is undergoing tremendous change. It is now a throbbing commercial activity rather than a backyard operation. Productivity of animal is in focus and companies are looking at mainly on developing quality and potent feed supplements for reducing the cost of production.

Another visible factor in the animal health sector is that the industry focus is now on prevention rather than cure. Biological and other preventive drugs market would now help exceed industry's growth which is estimated between 5 to 10 percent for the next few years. The total animal health care market size is Rs 1000 crore of which the herbal market constitutes around 9 percent.

Also consumer concern towards chemical residue in animal produce is on the rise. Thus herbal products market has a good potential to grow because of search of alternates for antibiotics and chemicals. Herbal formulations are an essential part of organic animal production.

Poultry products are mainly fuelling the industry growth. The focus is shifting from quantity to quality. With India holding a leadership status in milk production, is the third largest producer of broiler and the fifth largest in egg production globally, there is a huge opportunity for the Indian Animal Health market, now majority of the Indian veterinary companies are working towards making the best of these opportunities, added Kala.