Danish insulin maker tastes sweet success in China
The pharmaceutical industry was hit hard by regulatory changes and industrial restructuring in 2006, and its annual growth fell from over 70 percent in 2005 to 18 percent. More than one-fifth of the companies in the sector sank in the red. But Danish firm Novo Nordisk bucked the trend and achieved a growth of over 25 percent. Novo Nordisk International Operations Vice-President and head of its China Regional Office, Ronald Frank Christie, tells China Daily reporter Liu Baijia how his company did it.
Q: It was a challenging year for many pharmaceutical companies in China. How did you cope with all the changes?
A: Our business in China has been very strong for a number of years. We've been here for 12 years and our staff strength grew from 2 to over 1,000. Of course, initially when we set up shop in China, we kept pumping in money without making any profit, but that's normal when you are developing a business.
Now we run a very successful business and see a bright future for ourselves in China. We have a significant presence in China what we call a complete business operation. Apart from commercial operations, we also have a manufacturing facility in Tianjin, which is globally the only manufacturing plant for our insulin injection device Novo Pen 3. China is fast becoming a global manufacturing base for Novo Nordisk.
The other significant thing is that we have a R&D center in China, the first such center built by a multinational pharmaceutical company. We have 47 scientists working there on different projects.
According to IMS Health, in 2006, our turnover crossed 1 billion Danish kroner (1.4 billion yuan). Among multinationals, Novo Nordisk was one of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies in 2006, the ninth in fact, according to IMS Health.
The general pharmaceutical market in China grew by 15 percent in 2006 and the market for insulin grew by 25 percent. Our business grew even faster.
Q: How is China placed in Novo Nordisk's global business plan?
A: We see the growth of diabetes by 1 million patients every year as an increasing responsibility to help these people live with the disease. We will continue to provide sufficient high-quality products and support medical professionals in treating these patients through medical education programs for doctors and patients to change the way of diagnosis, treatment and management of diabetes. Our role in Novo Nordisk's global business is increasingly important. Our growth in China is probably the fastest in the world. China is one of the top 10 markets for us globally. In the longer term, it will probably become one of the top three.
Q: In view of the regulatory changes last year, what do you think of China's forthcoming healthcare reform?
A: In the past year, we have seen a lot of changes implemented by the State. From the perspective of China, personally I think most of these changes were very positive.
The Chinese government's efforts in improving the healthcare system is key to the future of the Chinese people and I think it's natural that the government should look at different types of regulations and programs. I'd like to support the Chinese government in these efforts and we feel, as a company, we can add a lot to the government's efforts in tackling diabetes.
Q: How will your company respond to the government's plan to increase healthcare spending for the rural population?
A: Novo Nordisk is probably the only foreign pharmaceutical company that can say it has a medical representative network in every provincial region, even as far-flung as Tibet. But there's still need for education and knowledge about diabetes. In the next couple of years, we'll establish a number of education programs in more areas and cover over 100 Chinese cities to improve awareness and management of diabetes.
(China Daily 04/03/2007 page15)
