Novartis goes generic in Brazil

Sales of Voltaren are down in Brazil since generics entered the market Keystone Archive

Swiss multinational Novartis has decided to grab a share of the generic pharmaceuticals market in Brazil, preparing cheaper copies of 100 brand-name drugs.

Novartis hopes its sales will reach $100 million (SFr166 million) by 2004. Its aim is to protect its own market share in a country with 170 million potential consumers.

The generic market is still in its infancy in Brazil, and sales of this type of pharmaceutical were authorized just two years ago. Major drug companies have already begun to feel the effects.

Over 400 generics are available on the Brazilian market. They have the same active substances as brand-name products, but they cost patients 30 to 40 per cent less.

So far, generics only account for 2.5 per cent of all drug sales, but their share is expected to reach 10 per cent within the next 12 months.

Sales of some Novartis pharmaceuticals, such as the anti-inflammatory Voltaren, or Cataflan, have already dropped one-fifth since the market rules changed. The Swiss giant has therefore decided to take on the competition on its own ground.

Novartis has already launched its first eight generics, of which six are antibiotics. By the end of the year, that number will reach 15, and by the end of 2002, 35.

The pharmaceutical company, which is investing just over $20 million in the project, expects to have 100 generic drugs on the market by 2003.

According to the director of Novartis’ generics department in São Paolo, the company aims to be among Brazil’s top three in this field, with a market share of around 15 per cent.

Novartis is already the second-biggest pharmaceutical company on the Brazilian market, with sales of $300 million last year. The drug market is worth $4 billion in Brazil.

swissinfo with agencies