Turkish Pharma Manufacturers Look to New Markets

Turkey now supports a price efficient manufacturing industry far cheaper than those in the West and with comparable regulatory standards, concludes a Pharma Insights report from CPhI Worldwide and Global Business Reports. The analysis of the Turkish pharma market was conducted among all major Turkish manufacturers, evaluating conditions for both foreign and domestic companies. Overall, the report concludes that pricing challenges domestically have had a parallel effect on increasing the dynamism in the market and improving overall competitiveness of the sector.

According to the report, improving reimbursement conditions should provide the right environment for an expanding healthcare industry, with Turkey having seen GDP per capita triple in the last 10-years alone. In addition to the domestic reimbursement market, niche products and export led growth is also providing opportunities for greater revenues. Investments in new facilities is also taking place across the market, which CPhI concludes will allow Turkey to establish itself as a supplier of drugs across the Middle East and North Africa and Commonwealth of Independent States. This will include exports as far reaching as the Baltic states, with Turkish manufacturers directly seeking to supply into Europe and the United States.

An increasingly prosperous population and a growing healthcare economy, coupled with a manufacturing base that has many FDA and EMEA approved sites means foreign direct investment is increasing. “The foreign/multinational companies now dominate with the larger Turkish firms acquired. There only a few large-scale Turkish companies left in the market,” said Vefik Koral, owner of Farkim.

As a result, those that remain will increasingly form collaborations and partnerships to help drive Turkey’s R&D sector. The Turkish government is also helping to reduce the trade deficit and increase innovation by offering corporate tax relief, access to institutions including Tubitak, and R&D expenditure support, which for accredited R&D centers covers 60% of staff expenditures. This new R&D focus is exemplified by the large investments made in several manufacturing facilities such as, Pharmactive for €88 million ($120 million), Onko Koçsel for €70 million ($95 million), Beko pharma for €60 million ($81 million) and Centurion for €20 million ($27 million).

Additionally, the country has a strong IP protection environment, with many Turkish owned manufacturers regularly patenting their own processes. According to an International IP Report, published in January 2014 by The Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) under the US Chamber of Commerce, Turkey now ranks tenth out of 25 countries in terms of patents, related rights, and limitations.

The CPhI reports states that a major obstacle for growth in the Turkish pharmaceutical industry is the government’s price referencing system and a fixed euro-lira conversion rate, with low prices putting increasing pressure on profit margins.

Source: CPhI Worldwide