Bal Pharma bites the Japanese pie

By siliconindia   |   Wednesday, 29 November 2006, 18:30 IST
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Bangalore: Bangalore-based Bal Pharma Ltd has made its foray into the $60-billion Japanese pharma market with two of its bulk drug products—Ebastine (used in antihistamines) and Gliclazide (an antidiabetic bulk active). The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare awarded the Foreign Manufacturers’ Accreditation to the company. It has also been granted the Japanese DMF (drug master file). Notably, Japan and Spain accounts for around $160 million of Ebastine's $200 million global sales figures. With the clearance to enter the Japanese market, Bal Pharma has become the only non-European source to have this approval in both the countries. Speaking to newspersons, Shailesh Siroya, Managing Director, said: "We are planning to file six more products for Japanese DMFs in the next three years. These are products that are being developed exclusively for the Japanese market." He added that the Japanese market would account for about 15 per cent of the company's revenues in the next three years. Bal Pharma’s last major foray was into herbal products three years ago. It currently has 13 products in the segment, with most of them being contract manufactured. The ayurvedic products division is expected to contribute significantly to the company by 2010, Siroya noted.