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KADMA sees bright global opportunities for polyherbals as Ayush Ministry propose to set up AEPC
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Nandita Vijay, Bengaluru
December 16 , 2020
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The Karnataka Ayush Drug Manufacturers Association (KADMA) sights global market opportunities, high quality medicinal plant cultivation and promotion of polyherbal formulations following the Union government’s proposal to form Ayush Export Promotion Council (AEPC).
Stating that it is a step in the right direction, the Association noted that AEPC would generate employment and also see start-ups to provide commercially viable innovations.
Dr Niranjan Murthy, president, KADMA and managing director, Pentacare Ayurpharma pointed out that India’s herbal exports accounted for a mere 2 to 3 per cent and mainly constituted raw-herbs, intermediary single herb extracts, supplementary additives and standalone herb extracts. But the potential of Ayurveda is in its polyherbal formulations which must come to the fore.
It is here AEPC can provide a huge opportunity for the growth of herbal formulations. The current COVID -19 has already created considerable demand for polyherbal formulations like for instance Ashwagandhadi Rasayana & Chyavanprash. This is despite the fact that several single ingredients including Guduchi, Ashwagandha etc are gaining ground, he added.
Therefore, the time is right now with AEPC on the cards to showcase our polyherbal formulations either in generic or proprietary names, as per the required global regulatory standards for quality assurance as its efficacy is now well-recognized. For conditions like arthritis, liver ailments, non-infective & non-communicable disorders, geriatric conditions and skin diseases, poly herbal formulations are proven clinically and found to have control and cure, said Dr Murthy.
The government needs to give priority to inculcate Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) so that industry can access high-quality raw materials to assure superior final products which will give an impetus to exports. Thousands of polyherbal formulations are available and government now needs to bring these into the ambit of exports. It will be an unmatchable and un-replaceable market opportunity for Indian Ayurveda companies, he said.
To strengthen the quality assurance systems at the small and medium companies, the government needs to provide financial assistance for in-house labs so that these services are no longer outsourced. On a larger platform it would boost in-house R&D, Dr Murthy told Pharmabiz in a telecon.
According to Dr Shrinivas Patil, secretary, KADMA while AEPC brings in a slew of advantages, a few disadvantages are foreseen. On a positive note, it will spur global market entry, boost domestic players to augment quality standards and production capacity. Contract medicinal plant farming and novel packaging concepts will also witness growth momentum.
However 90 per cent of the Ayush sector covers micro, small and medium companies. Many tiny players subsisted production of plant based medicines as a tradition. Therefore AEPC will demand facility upgrade and regulatory approvals. In such scenario government assistance is much wanted or else many units will cease to exist, he added.
It is vital for the government to frame dedicated stability study protocols for Ayush proprietary medicines, address raw material crunch and assess the impact of environmental and biodiversity laws. This is because ABS (access benefit sharing) levy is uncalled for as there has been no move to increase the medicinal plant cultivation, said Dr Patil.
Viewing AEPC as a game changer, Dr Chitra Phadnis, managing director, Madhur Pharma and member KADMA, pointed out that global market is under-explored for soft gel capsules, adaptogens, and immune adapters. But the prevailing challenges to standardize herbal classical and modern formulations pose as an impediment and even identification of the actual active ingredient in herbal medicine is work in progress.
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