Actavis was the first to launch a new generic pharmaceutical – Granisetron tablets – onto the demanding EU markets. The launch was timed to coincide with the expiry date of the originator’s patent in Germany last month. Granisetron is used to prevent nausea and vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Actavis Ltd, located in Bulebel, Malta, has undergone total transformation of the business in the last few years.

Three years ago the company in Malta started to sell onto the demanding markets in Western Europe and now almost all of its revenues are coming from that market. To achieve this, the company has invested heavily in training its employees, in state-of-the-art facilities and in research and development.

The Maltese company has developed and submitted seven new product dossiers to medicines authorities in Europe to date. Annually, Actavis Ltd is now completing around six new product dossiers, an investment of millions of Malta lira. These new products will be launched onto the market in the next few years.

This new generic pharmaceutical is the second product that has been fully developed, manufactured and launched from Malta onto the European market.

A generic pharmaceutical is essentially similar to an originator pharmaceutical product. It contains the same active substance and is interchangeable with the originator product upon patent expiry. Generic medicines are increasingly used in many EU countries as cost-effective alternatives to higher-priced originator pharmaceuticals.

Actavis Limited is a subsidiary of the Actavis Group. Actavis is one of the five leading generic pharmaceutical companies in the world, with 10,000 employees in 32 countries. The Maltese operation boasts a workforce of 350 highly skilled employees.