Russia’s full-scale invasion has fundamentally changed the outlook of Ukrainian society. The theses of inferiority and “underdevelopment” imposed by the post-Soviet mentality receded before the desire of Ukrainians to learn as much as possible about their own country, its strengths and potential.
Thus, the pharmaceutical company Farmak destroys the deep-rooted myths about Ukrainian pharmaceuticals from the inside, demonstrating to doctors the processes of creating modern medicines using the latest equipment.
Photo: a group of doctors at the packaging area for solid medicines (tablets, capsules, dragees, sachets)
Since the beginning of the year, more than 100 doctors from Chernihiv, Poltava, Sumy, Konotop, Pyriatyn, Kremenchuk, Brovary and Kyiv have visited the production and quality control laboratories of the Farmak plant, and have seen with their own eyes the processes of creating finished drugs in various forms.
“It seems that I have been somewhere in Japan, and not here in Ukraine,” says Yevhen Lyulka, a cardiac surgeon at the Poltava Regional Cardiovascular Center.
Photo: biotechnological active pharmaceutical ingredients production site
During the tour, the doctors learned that Farmak, as the largest pharmaceutical company in Ukraine, undergoes about 10 Ukrainian and international inspections per year, and also has certificates of compliance of production and laboratories with all EU requirements: EU GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) .
The company buys raw materials from trusted suppliers from the USA, Japan, Italy, Germany, Spain, India, China, etc. Each batch of raw materials undergoes strict incoming quality control. Also, each batch of finished medicines goes through at least five stages of control and is sent to several laboratories at once, where its quality is assessed according to a clearly defined number of indicators. In general, the laboratories of the Farmak are certified for 135 different test methods approved by the world’s leading pharmacopoeias: the European, British and US Pharmacopoeias.
Photo: a group of doctors watching the production process of liquid aseptic medicines
“I am pleasantly surprised by the scale and modernity of Farmak’s production, strict quality standards, and I am proud that we have such companies in Ukraine,” says Yuriy Holovanyov, family doctor at Consultative and Diagnostic Center No. 1 in Boryspil.
All production processes are automated and digitalized as much as possible. High-tech equipment manufactured in the EU is used in the manufacture and quality control of medicines. In total, the enterprise operates 25 production sites, one of which, for the manufacture of medicines in nebules, was opened already during the full-scale invasion of the enemy.
Each year, Farmak invests approximately UAH 100 million in ensuring product quality control: the purchase of reagents and materials for research. It also reinvests more than 90% of profits in strengthening its own production capacities. The war did not become a reason to suspend investments. So, in 2022, the company invested more than UAH 400 million in the research and development of new drugs.
Photo: a workshop for the production of aseptic medicines in ampoules and vials
Today, Farmak is the leader of the pharmaceutical market in Ukraine in terms of drug sales*. At factories in Kyiv and Shostka, Sumy region, the company produces about 400 types of anti-cold, endocrinological, gastroenterological, cardiological, neurological and other drugs. These medicines are exported to more than 50 countries, including Switzerland, Great Britain, Denmark, Poland and France.
The company continues to invite doctors to tour the company on an ongoing basis. You can sign up by e-mail info@farmak.ua
You can also watch the online tour of Farmak production in English HERE.
* – according to Proxima Research as of March 2023
