The Himalaya Drug Company, synonymous with the hepatoprotective herbal drug - Liv 52, also developed the first anti-hypertensive drug Serpina from Rauwolfia serpentina. Over the years, the 75-year-old ISO 9001:2000 certified company developed several pharmaceutical grade herbal products for health and personal care. Of this many products are fast moving in the international markets. In an e-mail interview with Nandita Vijay of Pharmabiz, Ravi Prasad, President and CEO, Himalaya Drug Company, shares his views on the herbal drug scenario worldwide and the factors that are required to boost herbal drug exports from India. Ravi Prasad has been with Himalaya Drug Company for the last 14 years. He joined the company as sales development manager and steadily rose as export manager to become the VP, Int’l Marketing. During April 1998, he was elevated as President and CEO. Excerpts:

The biggest challenge facing the Indian herbal drug exporters include the stringent quality norms being enforced in the European Union, through the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive (THMPD), Food Supplements Directive (FSD) and the Pharmaceutical Legislative Review (medicines for human use directive). As a leader in the segment, please give us an overview of the situation and its impact on the sector?
Directives like the European Union - THMPD, FSD and the Pharmaceutical Legislative Review (medicines for human use directive) would only serve to improve the industry, as only validated high quality products can be marketed. It will discourage unorganised sectors from exporting substandard products.

As a leader in the field, would you suggest a few strategies that are required for making Indian herbal drugs globally competitive?
The Government of India should set up a regulatory mechanism and centralized testing facility that checks if products have the quality that conforms to WHO requirements. Each herb manufacturing facility should have high standards that strictly adhere to Good Manufacturing Practices, Good Clinical Practices, Good Laboratory Practices, Good Harvesting Practices and Good Agricultural Practices.

The Government is now planning to set up a task force on Ayurveda. How far the Government interacts with the industry and with a leading player in the sector like Himalaya, on policy matters for improving the sector?
The Government is not that interactive at present. However, we look forward to the agenda of the Task Force.

Absence of proper regulatory mechanisms, testing facility and lack of scientific cultivation of medicinal herbs are cited as the major reasons for the dismal performance of India in the herbal export front. What are your views?
The world herb market is valued several billion dollars, and growing. India has a dismal share in this market due to lack of world quality standards. The proper regulatory mechanisms, testing facilities, and scientific cultivation of herbs would certainly add value to the Made-in-India stamp, for quality products with worldwide acceptance.

Currently what is the lacuna in the herbal drug sector with reference to the regulatory issues?
The biggest lacuna in the herbal sector is that there is no well-defined regulatory mechanism for standardization of the products.

An emerging trend is that herbal companies like Himalaya introduce new cosmeceuticals and nutraceuticals in the market at a faster pace, in comparison to drugs from pharmaceutical companies. What is the reason for this?
The main reason for a trend towards cosmeceuticals by herbal companies is that today’s consumers have higher awareness, which led to an increased demand for high quality natural products.

Which are the prime growth generators for the company?
Himalaya herbals apart from high-end healthcare. The herbal range consists of natural herbal based products including hair care, skin care, body care, health care and oral care. Currently the company’s products in the OTC segment are pegged at 51, where pure herbs account for 12 products and personal care range comprise 39 products. In the prescription + therapeutic drugs category, there are 32 products. The key focus would be to build the Himalaya brand and make it a household name for herbal healthcare. India is a key market, and we are looking to position Himalaya as the global standard for herbal healthcare.

At Mexico you have set up your first overseas plant as a joint venture. Kindly provide details of the JV, investments and products for manufacture? What are your other plans in the overseas markets?
We have a manufacturing tie-up in Syria. At Mexico, a proposal is in progress. Other offshore facilities are in the pipeline and will be decided when required.

Kindly elaborate on your market presence in overseas countries...
We enjoy good market share in the US, UAE and Western Europe. We have an office in Singapore to cater to the Asia Pacific. After our new facility is commissioned, we will explore Australia and New Zealand. Initially, we plan to introduce cosmeceuticals followed by the Healthcare and Pure Herbs range that require registration, which is a lengthy process.
As a company policy, we will not be able to disclose any sales figures. The growth drivers are Russia, CIS, Middle East, Latin America and the USA. The global market for herbal healthcare is estimated at $ 62 billion. The estimated size of the herbal healthcare and personal care market in India is estimated between Rs 2,500-3,000 crore.

Which disease segments hold immense potential for the company to foray into?
Himalaya offers head-to-toe pure herbal care. Consumers use Himalaya products as per requirement. Hence disease segmentation is difficult.