Dr. Muhammed Majeed, managing director, Sami Labs received Export award from Karnataka's minister of industries and commerce, RV Deshpande.

Sami Labs, the herbal extracts major bagged the Karnataka State Export Award for its excellence in exports for the period 1996 - 2000.

At the awards ceremony held here in Bangalore, Dr. Muhammed Majeed, managing director, received the Gold Award and distinction certificate for "Best Export Award - Overall." The exports of the company between 1999 and 2000 were of the order of Rs 44.49 crore.

The company also won the Department of Scientific & Industrial Research National Award Winner in 2002 Sami Labs for its a new anti-cancer drug - "Methyl Selenocysteine" where it developed and synthesized this compound and is producing the product commercially. The product has been approved as a food supplement as per the Nutritional Supplement Regulations by the USFDA which is proved to inhibit cancer cell proliferation in Breast cancer, Colon cancer and probably other cancers. Sami Labs is the second company worldwide to develop this drug and that too in a relatively cost effective manner. The development involved stereo specific chemistry.

Earlier, Sami Labs Ltd. had developed L-Selenomethionine, another anti-cancer compound found mostly in yeast for which the company was given a National Award for Basic Drugs in 1994.

The company has also participated in the Dubai Fair for its cosmeceutical products and scout for possible tie-ups with some distributors in the Gulf.

With the recent launch of its Nutraceuticals division, the company is in the process of making a strong presence in the domestic market.