Crippled by Cost? CMO Quo Vadis

Introduction: The global CMO market is said to reach USD 40.7 billion by 2015. Patent expiry of drugs, stringent price regulations (especially in Europe, US) to purchase drugs from pharma companies, government budget cuts for pharma R&D ? these are the forces which are expected to reshape the future of pharma and the CMO industry. At least 100 manufacturing facilities owned by pharma companies were shut down in the US alone in 2013 due to reduced profits. Global biopharma companies are looking out ways to reduce costs. Efforts to reduce fixed costs have forced the pharma companies? march towards the alternative ?Outsourcing?, thus promising increasing opportunities for CMOs and CDMOs in future as well. Emerging markets like India, China and Latam are turning out to be the favored destinations for outsourcing in the future.