Denmark is one of Europe’s most competitive nations when it comes to the availability and cost of generic drugs. A recent study by the European Commission found that competitive pricing and convenient access to generic drugs was keeping the costs low in Denmark. Read the full story

The legal drugs market has finally been cracked open now that Sweden’s state-run monopoly on pharmacies has officially ended. This will allow new companies to sell prescription medications and eventually over-the-counter sales of non-prescription drugs in retail outlets. Read the full story

Actavis Group and Japan’s ASKA Pharmaceutical have formally signed an agreement establishing a joint company: Actavis ASKA K.K. with its head office in Tokyo. The preliminary agreement was signed last November. Read the full story

Figures just released from Denmark’s National Patient Registry indicate a substantial rise in the number of teenage girls who have been admitted to hospital due to overdosing on painkillers. The trend has been steadily increasing in recent years, rising seven percent alone since 2007. Read the full story

Clamelle Chlamydia Test Kits will soon be available in UK pharmacies allowing customers to test for Chlamydia without the need to visit a doctor or hospital. Read the full story

Employees from many of Actavis Group‘s diverse departments worldwide will be present at this year’s annual CPhI conference, which is held in Frankfurt, Germany, from today until 2 October.

Medis – Actavis’ third party sales division — had its own stand at the CPhI exhibition for 8 years, but shared the floor with Actavis Group last year for the first time. Actavis and Medis employees will take part in the CPhI conference, the world’s leading pharmaceutical trade conference, now in its 19th year.

Read the full story

Actavis, a generic pharmaceutical manufacturer based in Iceland, has launched a generic drug for prostate cancer in the United Kingdom.

The drug Bicalutamide is the first generic version of the cancer drug to be made available in the UK and will be available in tablet form in 50mg and 150mg doses.

Actavis launched the product, which is the generic version of AstraZeneca’s Casodex, as soon as the brand product‘s UK patent expired on July 8th.

Svend Andersen, Actavis Executive Vice President of Western Europe Sales, said: “We are pleased to be the first generic pharmaceutical company to bring this product to the market – creating value for patients at a lower price. Bicalutamide….is used in treating prostate cancer and also in combination with other treatments of malign diseases, prescribed by both hospitals and general practitioners.”

Actavis also launched generic Bicalutamide in France and Germany on July 9th but the drug has been available in some countries such as the Czech Republic, Poland and Iceland since 2007.

Actavis is a leading generic pharmaceutical company which operates in 40 countries and has 11,000 employees.

More information on Actavis can be found at: www.actavis.com

Iceland-based generic drugs company Actavis announced this week it has sold a product portfolio of seven established brands on the Polish market to Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, an Indian company hoping to build its presence in eastern and central Europe.

The sale took effect on 1st July, but neither company revealed the amount of money paid. The portfolio of seven products includes the antidepressant Cital and Lamotrix, which is used to treat epilepsy.

Actavis undertook the deal in collaboration with Biovena, its Polish subsidiary, and did so because of “Ongoing integration”, company sources said.

Actavis has acquired more than 20 companies in recent years, which it is now integrating into its existing product portfolio.

The company says this latest deal is intended to streamline Actavis’s extensive activities in Poland, in addition to bringing in an undisclosed lump sum from the sale itself.

Generic drug manufacturer Actavis in Serbia has been awarded a number of certificates for product quality, the environment and occupational health and safety.

The Iceland-based generic drug manufacturer received the ISO and OHSAS awards at a recent presentation ceremony in Belgrade. The certificates were issued by SGS, an international inspection, testing and certification company.

Actavis received certificates for the international standards ISO 9001:2000 (quality) and ISO 14001 (environment), as well as OHSAS 18001 (occupational health and safety).

“Great teamwork and the efforts of all our employees have brought our company to the highest European quality, environmental and health and safety standards,” said Goran Stojilkovic, Managing Director of Actavis in Serbia. “We are proud of our company’s commitment to developing environmental awareness in the local community,” he added.

Actavis is a leading generic drugs manufacturer which specialises in the development, production and sale of generic pharmaceuticals. Based in Iceland, the company has operations in 40 countries and 11,000 employees.

For more information on Actavis visit www.actavis.com

Actavis, an international pharmaceutical firm which is based in Iceland, recently signed an agreement to acquire a manufacturing site from Pfizer in Nerviano, northern Italy.

The site, which covers an area of 300,000 square metres and employs around 340 staff, focuses on the manufacture of oncology products. Actavis, which specialises in the development, manufacture and sale of generic pharmaceuticals, also entered into a separate multi-year agreement with Pfizer to supply oncology products.

The Nerviano site was founded by Farmitalia in 1965 and has been approved by the US Food and drug administration (FDA), European Union and Japanese regulatory authorities. The site serves 70 markets around the world and will significantly increase Actavis’ capability in manufacturing oncology pharmaceuticals.

Robert Wessman, CEO and President of Actavis said: “This transaction will enable us to meet the exciting growth projections we see for our oncology product portfolio over the coming years. The site is truly world-class, with outstanding facilities and a highly skilled and experienced workforce, and has a proven track record as a supplier of high quality products over many years.

Read the full story