Pinoy Group Unveils Innovative Generics
NINE Filipino-owned companies are posed to enter the highly competitive pharmaceuticals industry.
In an aggressive move seen by industry analysts as a bid to get a slice of the giant pharmaceutical pie, upstart InnoGen is eyeing the market high in consumer demand, from antibiotics to medications against hypertension.
InnoGen – for Innovative Generics – groups Aldril Pharma (Neurology, Psychiatric Medicines); Randril International (Pain Management/Rehabilatory Medicines); Eadriex Pharma (Dermatology/Anti Infectives); Vitalink Health Products (Anti Diabetes/Cardiovascular Medicines); Vamsler Philippines (Cardiovascular/Anti Obesity); Westfield Pharmaceuticals (Cardiovascular/Gastrointestinal Medicines); Solvang Pharma (Woman and Child Care); Metz Pharma (Respiratory Medicine); and Dr. Zen Research (Hospital Supplies/Consumer Health).
There is plenty of room in the highly lucrative pharmaceutical market – worth an estimated P86-billion in 2006.
About 70% is covered by foreign drug companies and 21% by an established Filipino pharmaceutical company. The rest is shared by local and – by industry standards – medium-scale manufacturers.
InnoGen claims a modest share of 1% and hopes to get more when its competitively-priced products hit the market in July.
On July 9, InnoGen will launch 15 new product lines for common ailments like infections, hypertension, allergy, migraine and obesity. They will vie for high-profile market niches ranging from antibiotics to cardiovascular drugs previously considered expensive to ordinary Filipinos.
InnoGen, for example, has a wide range of cardiovascular products against hypertension: Ramipril (Ramipro) and Hydrochlorothiazide (Diuzide), Lisinopril (Lipril), Amlodipine (Amlodine) and Methyldopa (Dopamet) for pregnant women with hypertension.
The antibiotic market is well covered by InnoGen’s Sultamicillin (Zunamyn), Levofloxacin (Levec) and Cefuroxime (Zefur /Rovix).
InnoGen will also introduce Gabapentin (Gabatin) and Sumatriptan (Sumigran) for migraine; Meloxicam (Meloflam), a pain killer or analgesic; and Fexofenadine (Fenafex), an anti-allergy drug.
“We hope to make a difference in the pharmaceutical industry,” says Alexander N. Carmona, InnoGen Marketing Director. “We improve existing products into new forms and much better drugs that are cost-effective, efficient and of excellent quality, for the welfare of Filipino end-users.”
It is easier said than done. “It took us years to have all these products available in the market, two years for development and three years in the regulatory stage,” he says.
The nine companies decided to merge operations in 2002 – a year after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo initiated government programs to lower the cost of quality medicines and make them affordable to more Filipinos.
“We have responded to her call and started working silently on the development process, but our efforts paid off,” Carmona points out. “What were expensive life-saving drugs affordable only to the affluent are now within reach by the general public.”
To do this, InnoGen spearheaded and made way for technology transfer and partnership with big pharmaceutical companies around the world, enabling the company to avail of the latest equipment and facilities in the industry.
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InnoGen products were manufactured on the standards set by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration, US Food and Drug Administration and the Bureau of Food and Drugs-Department of Health.
“We believe that we can contribute in making our country self-sufficient by manufacturing medicines on Filipino soil. We are using Filipino ingenuity and inventiveness to come up with innovative and effective products. These are all Filipino- made products using technology bought from foreign companies.
“We are in constant search to improve our products and services because that is the only manner to lift the standard of health care for the people,” Carmona says. “We carry on our social responsibility down to the community where we belong.
Photo caption:
An InnoGen pharmacist monitors the dissolution test which mimics the digestive system and shows the amount of medication that is available for use by the body over time. It is used to test time-release products with the highest possible accuracy.