Pfizer sells Protinex for $ 7 million

Valsad: Pfizer India has decided to sell its Protinex food supplement business in India to East Asiatic Company of Denmark for $ 7 million (Rs 35 crore).

This agreement comes into effect globally as the parent of the Indian subsidiary Pfizer Inc has, in principle, agreed to sell the brand to East Asiatic Company.

Pfizer India, in a notification to the Bombay Stock Exchange, said that Pfizer Ltd in India has successfully finalised phased sales transition and manufacturing support agreements for Protinex with its EAC Nutrition's Indian subsidiary EAC Trading Pvt Ltd. This is pursuant to Pfizer Products Inc, USA and Pfizer Corporation Panama's sale of Dumex trademark and the protein supplement brand Protinex to EAC Nutrition Ltd, Denmark.

According to the final agreement, soon to be signed, Pfizer India will continue to make the Protinex brand in the country for the next three years under a revenue sharing and manufacturing arrangement. The two companies will also jointly promote the food supplement brand

Protinex, a food supplement brand registered Rs 26-crore sales last fiscal and is growing at 2-3 per cent per annum, say analysts. It is Pfizer's fourth largest brand and accounts for about 7 per cent of the company's overall sales. It also figures among the top 75 pharma brands in India. The other top brands of the company are Becosules B complex and Corex cough syrup.

Pfizer plans to focus on its core businesses and has wanted to sell the food supplement product for some time. The strategic acquisition is expected to give a boost to the existing infant food business of East Asiatic Company.

For East Asiatic Company, a Danish company with interests in food and nutrition, this marks a re-entry in the Indian market after 50 years when it had exited the domestic market after Pfizer bought some of its businesses, sources said.

Pfizer India recently concluded a merger with Parke Davis India Ltd and Pharmacia India Private Ltd. The company registered a turnover of Rs 109.3 crore, up by 17 per cent and net profit was at Rs 15.4 crore.