2001 - the view from NOAH
Always under the shadow of Foot and Mouth, the animal medicine industry
in 2001 has been dominated by regulatory reviews. From Europe came Review 2001; in the UK there has been the Marsh Report. And as the year comes to an end, various
reviews are being undertaken in relation to Foot and Mouth disease. Entering 2001 with a
background trend of increased companion animal medicine sales and falling farm animal
sales, the FMD outbreak threw even that into turmoil: the full effects have yet to be seen
at manufacturer level.
Review 2001 is the complete
examination by the European Commission of the rules governing the marketing authorisation
of human, and animal, medicines. The industry saw this very much as an opportunity. FEDESA (the European Federation for
Animal Health, of which NOAH is a member), together with the European veterinary
profession and others, worked hard to try to use this chance to make the licensing process
more efficient and hence to improve medicine availability. There have been many successes
and positive points to come out of the Commission proposals, which show the regulators are
aware of the vital role of medicines in keeping animals healthy and protecting food
safety.
But in the final draft a clause crept in that proposed to make all farm
animal medicines prescription only. In one fell swoop the UK could potentially lose the
whole successful PML system. NOAH has worked closely with many other organisations to
defend this controlled yet accessible distribution route and the UK Minister has
recognised the concern. NOAH welcomes the UK line: "to seek to modify the proposal to
enable a flexible approach to the distribution of veterinary medicinal products that takes
advantage of existing national practices, so long as consumer protection and animal
welfare can be demonstrably assured". Round one is won, but the battle over this
clause will continue throughout next year, as the Council and European Parliament consider
the proposals in parallel.
UK animal medicine sales have shown
a trend over the past two years or so - a growth in sales of companion animal products
balanced by a fall in farm animal sales due to falling farm incomes, leading to overall
static sales. This trend was expected to continue in 2001. However, Foot and Mouth Disease
arrived in February, which put paid to all predictability.
The FMD crisis obviously hit hard. The timing of the outbreak caused
maximum problems to the industry: late winter and spring are times when livestock are
particularly at risk from disease or parasite challenge. It is common for sheep and cattle
to be dosed with wormers and vaccines before turning out to grass, while spring treatment
of sheep with ectoparasiticides (sheep dips etc.) against scab, fly-strike etc. is an
important spring routine to protect both animal welfare and productivity and control
contagious disease.
Understandably farmers were pre-occupied with the threat of FMD and,
already in financial difficulties, were reluctant to spend money and effort treating
animals which might be culled a few days later. Several manufacturers offered farmers a
refund if their animals were culled due to FMD after they had been treated with their
products. Nevertheless, there is a real fear that parasitic disease problems are being
stored up for the future - in particular that sheep scab, until 1992 a notifiable disease,
will run out of control. Even companion animals have been caught up in the uncertainty, as
rural dogs and cats appear not to have received their usual flea treatments.
By the time FMD took hold a large proportion of sales by manufacturers
had taken place. What is not yet known is the extent to which merchants achieved their
usual level of spring sales or, indeed, whether products were sold to farmers but remain
unused. Not until the beginning of 2002 will it be seen if 'normal' autumn sales occurred
or, as many fear, will it emerge that merchants and farmers did not make autumn purchases
because they still have unused stocks, bought in the spring.
However, it is inevitable that, in those areas directly hit by FMD, the
massive slaughter of sheep and cattle will mean that sales will be well down
because of the reduced number of animals left to treat. In these areas this trend will
continue through 2002 and beyond until farms are restocked.
Sales of companion animal products in rural areas have also been
affected. This is partly because of less sporting activity by horses and dogs, and partly
because many vets were seconded to FMD work and so saw fewer patients in the surgery.
Some products have, of course, increased in use - disinfectants (not
strictly medicines, but an important part of the wider animal health sector) and
euthanasia products have seen abnormally high usage, due to their role in the FMD control
programme.
The 2000 sales of animal medicines in
the UK amounted to nearly £360m at ex-manufacturers prices - about 47% for farm
animals, the remainder for ‘companion animals’ (pets and horses). Sales for the
12 months ending 30 September 2001 are £352m - figures are obviously not yet available
for the whole year. Much of the decline relates to farm animal sales, but this year there
are no major increases in companion animal sectors either. Companion animal vaccines show
an increase of around 6% over the equivalent total this time last year:
anti-inflammatories and cardiovascular preparations show a small increase, antibiotics are
static, small animal ectoparasiticides are down so far. Sadly, the only sector showing a
major gain is neurological preparations, showing an increase of just under 16%, mainly due
to an almost doubling of euthanasia preparation sales.
So what will happen in 2002? It remains to be seen whether the downturn
in the global economy will have will have an impact on the UK animal medicine industry. In
previous times of recession companion animal sales have suffered - routine vaccination
might be missed, for example, if an animal does not have to be kennelled in order for the
owners to take a holiday abroad. Pet insurance policies may lapse, as money gets tighter.
As the farming community tries to find its feet, there will be those
re-stocking who perhaps can afford to invest in the best stockmanship, including the
proper use of preventive medicine. But there will also be those that were not directly
hit, that have not been able to trade but were not eligible for State compensation, who
will struggle to find the money necessary to invest in the health of their animals. 2002
looks to be a difficult year, but if British livestock farming is to come through, animal
medicines will have a vital role. Healthy food comes from healthy animals.
There will be issues to face. Review
2001 will continue, and the Government response to the Marsh
Report, the 'Independent Review of Veterinary Dispensing' is expected very soon. It
will be interesting to see how the two progress in parallel.
But, if the most recent WHO and OIE conferences on antibiotics are
anything to go by, it is good to see that the benefits of animal medicines are being
considered, as well as any potential risks. The responsible attitude taken with animal
medicines is being recognised. Much has been achieved by working together - in the UK
through RUMA (Responsible Use of
Medicines in Agriculture Alliance) on the farm animal side and through groups such as the Pet Health Council on
companion animal issues. The animal medicine industry looks forward to continued
constructive dialogue in the future.
19 December 2001
Notes for Editors
- For further information contact Roger Cook or Alison Glennon at NOAH, tel. +44 (0)20 8367 3131,
or visit the NOAH website.
- The National Office of Animal Health was formed on 1 January 1986 to represent the UK
companies which research, develop, manufacture and market licensed animal health products.
The association has 38 corporate members and 11
associate members. In 2000 NOAH's members accounted for
around 95% of the £357 million UK animal health market, with additional valuable exports.
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