‘Why do we value a Mars bar more than life-saving medicine?’ Sandoz CEO calls for level playing field with cheap Chinese antibiotics

Antibiotics save millions of lives annually, adding an average of 23 years to human life expectancy since penicillin's accidental discovery 100 years ago. Sandoz, a Swiss pharmaceutical company, is one of the few remaining producers of antibiotics in Europe, operating a €150 million factory in Kundl, Austria. Last year, 86% of EU imports of penicillins and their derivatives came from China, highlighting the continent's dependency on Chinese antibiotic manufacturers.

Richard Saynor, Sandoz' CEO, argues that this dependence poses a security risk and urges for a level playing field in antibiotic production. He claims that Chinese manufacturers undercut competitors by using heavily subsidized ingredients and have flooded global markets with ultra-cheap pharmaceuticals. Sandoz filed a complaint with the European Commission, requesting an anti-dumping probe into Chinese imports of amoxicillin, the active ingredient in the antibiotic.

Despite public health services facing financial challenges, Saynor believes paying a higher price for antibiotics is justified, comparing the cost to the value created by their development. Sandoz plans to introduce over 100 biosimilar products within the next decade, which could generate a $1 trillion social impact through cost savings for healthcare systems.