Goa has a number of Pharma companies. Lupin Labs, Merck, Glenmark, Blue Cross, Abbott, and Zydus Cadila are some of the well-known names. There are also a number of smaller Pharma companies located in Goa. Together they bring in sizeable tax revenues to Goa. They also help counterbalance the belief that Goa’s economy is solely dependent on tourism.
Recently, however, one of these well-known pharma companies has received a major blow. According to a report in the Economic Times on Tuesday 7th November, the drugmaker, Lupin Labs said it received a warning letter from the USFDA for its Goa and Indore plants.
Lupin Labs itself, in a BSE filing, said “The company has received a warning letter issued by the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) on November 6, 2017, for our formulation manufacturing facilities at Goa and Indore (Pithampur Unit II)”
Located in the Verna Industrial Estate, the Lupin Factory has been manufacturing drugs for the US generic Pharmaceutical market since 2003. They also manufacture speciality products such as Suprax – an anti-infective product in paediatrics. It’s also a recognized leading manufacturer of cephalosporin API’s with FDA approval.
Lupin Labs was founded in 1968 by Deshbandhu Gupta who was an associate professor at BITS, Pilani, Rajasthan. He named his company after the Lupin Flower and its inherent qualities. The Romans cultivated it throughout their empire and ate the seeds. The Australian sweet Lupin and the European white Lupin are also very popular for the same reasons. The Lupin seeds are considered to be an alternative to Soybeans. When Mr Gupta died on June 26, 2017, his wife took over as Chairman (Chairperson). She has been ably managing the company and is confident of taking the necessary corrective action to address the USFDA concerns.
Lupin has been manufacturing and marketing a wide range of Generics and speciality drugs quite successfully for the US markets for quite some time now. So, the warning letter from USFDA has been quite a blow to the company’s business.
Though the news has caused Lupin shares to plunge 17% to about Rs 856/- on the BSE, the company, though deeply disappointed, is planning to take immediate corrective action. Here’s what the company is saying
“We plan to address the concerns raised by the USFDA expeditiously and will work with the USFDA to resolve these issues at the earliest,”
Best wishes to Lupin and to Mrs Manju Deshbandhu Gupta for a quick resolution to the USFDA issue.
Information source: Economic Times, Wikipedia
