GK VIC: 3 measures of state support will solve the issue of import independence of veterinary drugs in 3 years

In his welcoming speech, Sergei Mitin noted that the Federation Council systematically pays attention to the development of the veterinary industry, both in the format of parliamentary control and in legislative activities. “In the modern world, the veterinary industry is one of the determining factors in ensuring the country's security. The efficiency of production and processing of livestock products, and ultimately the implementation of the Food Security Doctrine of the Russian Federation, directly depends on the epizootic well-being of the territories, ”said the parliamentarian.

Timur Chibilyaev, Executive DIRECTOR of the National Veterinary Association (NVA), said that at the end of 2022, the volume of production of all veterinary pharmaceuticals amounted to 63.7 billion rubles. The share of Russian manufacturers is 44%, and it can be significantly increased. For comparison, the share of local manufacturers in the pharmaceutical market of the Russian Federation is 36%.

Sergey Kasparyants, Executive Director of the VIK Group of Companies, emphasized that the results achieved by Russian manufacturers in the veterinary market are outstanding: until 2022 there was no support for the industry, this is independent work, and in a very competitive environment. Only in the Russian Federation there are all world players from the usa, Europe and Asia, as well as regional companies from the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Africa, with the participation of more than 200 companies from Belarus and our country. A very efficient market has emerged in the course of fierce competition, but the current geopolitical challenges carry serious risks.

According to NVA, antibiotics are in the most advantageous position in terms of import substitution - more than 52% of manufactured drugs are Russian. Domestically produced vaccines occupy slightly more than 1/3 of the market, while about 3 billion of them are produced through state tenders, and a large share is exported. Antiparasitic drugs, coccidiostats and hormones account for about 1/5.

The HEAD of the VIK Group cited data on the achievement of import independence based on the statistics of the last 4 years: “If the industry continues to develop at the same pace as it is now, the mathematical trend suggests that import independence for antibacterial drugs will be achieved by 2028, for vaccines - by 2032 , hormones by 2040, coccidiostats by 2113, antiparasitics perhaps never.”

At the same time, the potential of Russian manufacturers, not only in the local, but also in the world market, is very high. “VIK Group of Companies is in the TOP-25 largest veterinary companies in the world and supplies its products to more than 50 countries. We know for sure that it is in demand on international markets due to the fact that the Russian market is highly competitive. Only 12 companies produce 88% of the total volume of veterinary drugs in the Russian Federation, and they will also work effectively abroad. By 2030, the EXPORT potential may reach 30 billion rubles,” Sergey Kasparyants added.

Sergei Mitin noted that in order to effectively use the potential of domestic business, the state needs to determine the directions of import substitution, use various measures of state support for development and exports.

The currently existing state support measures are a simplified registration of import-substituting drugs, which made it possible to launch dozens of new products on the market, as well as the official separation of the veterinary industry in March of this year with the assignment of OKPD2 codes.

Sergey Kasparyants proposed to introduce 3 key factors of assistance to manufacturers, guaranteeing the fulfillment of import independence tasks in 2-3 years:

1. Include enterprises that are members of the National Veterinary Association, Vetbioprom, ARRIAH into the list of backbone ones.
2. Develop measures to accelerate the commissioning of new production sites for these enterprises.
3. Develop measures to accelerate the introduction of new veterinary drugs.

The implementation of these measures will allow not to limit end consumers, maintain a guaranteed level of safety and efficiency of products, expand the range, and will not require funding from the Ministry of Agriculture and the industry.

Director of the Department of Veterinary Medicine of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation Maria Novikova announced that the necessary state support measures are being developed jointly with the Ministry of Industry and Trade - in particular, we are talking about the Federal Scientific and Technical Program for reimbursement of costs for the development of drugs and a list of these costs.

Based on the results of the parliamentary hearings, a working document will be formed on the regulations of the Federation Council, which will be sent to all executive authorities, interested subjects of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Russian Federation.