October 31, 2005

Serbia's leading pharmaceutical factory to start Tamiflu production
 

Serbia's leading pharmaceutical factory, Galenika, announced plans Friday to produce Tamiflu under a licensing agreement with the drug's Swiss maker, Roche Holding AG, Galenika's director said.

The Serbian drugs giant, which marked its 60th anniversary Friday, would "start production within days," company director Aleksandar Pravdic said, but gave no details of the ongoing negotiations with Roche.

The Swiss company is to supply Galenika with the original components for Tamiflu, while the Serbian producer would "perform the final stages in producing the drug," Pravdic said.

No price for Galenika-made Tamiflu has been set, he said.

Tamiflu has been available in Serbia since 2002, but could only be bought in pharmacies permitted to sell imported drugs, at a price of CSD2,270 (US$1=CSD70.90629) a packet.

Demand for Tamiflu has soared worldwide with the spread of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu to European countries Russia, Romania and Croatia.

Though it is difficult for humans to contract H5N1, the strain has killed at least 62 people in Asia in two years, mostly poultry farmers directly infected by birds.

Tamiflu anti-viral drug is believed to help humans ward off infection.

Experts are watching the development of H5N1 for fear it could mutate into a form more easily spread to and between humans and spark a human flu pandemic.