In the last year, an ageing population and increasing cost control measures have resulted in a great demand for pharma products in Japan, especially in the generic and biotechnology sectors. With further development in the industry and rising competition, understanding the complexities is a crucial factor for success in this growing market, which is expected to be valued at US$166bn by 2023.
In an attempt to contain the country’s growing spend, the trial implementation of Japan’s new health technology assessment (expected this year) is designed to restrict market access to pharma companies entering products that do not have clear cost efficient or innovative therapy benefits. Historically, the Japanese market has been quite insular and has been resistant to erosion from lower cost generic imports. However, the government’s decision to raise the target for generic use from 60% by the end of April 2018 to 80% by April 2021 means the potential for imports has never been higher.
CPhI Japan, organised by UBM EMEA, will take place at the Big Sight Exhibition Centre, Tokyo, Japan, 20-22 April. On its 15th anniversary, 2016 will see the event co-located with ICSE, BioPh, InnoPack and P-MEC in conjunction with LABWorld, bringing the best of the Japanese pharma industry under one roof.
At CPhI Japan, visitors and exhibitors will interact with more than 465 exhibiting companies from 27 countries, including major suppliers of pharmaceutical ingredients, packaging, contract services and bio solutions as well as the latest machinery and technology providers. There will be a wide range of free-to-attend seminars and paid-for conferences on trending industry topics, giving valuable insight into the Japanese pharma industry. More than 9,000 pharma professionals attend the seminars every year, and as the industry undergoes changes, attending CPhI Japan gives competitive insights in the world’s second largest pharma market.
This year’s highlights include:
Pre-schedule meetings with exhibitors via the Buyer Appointment System, enabling them to pre-plan their appointments and help visitors and exhibitors find companies that best match their business needs.
After a successful launch in 2015, CPhI Women returns for its 2nd edition. This session will unite female executives from the Japan’s pharmaceutical network, celebrating female leadership and encouraging empowerment exclusively within the Japanese industry.,/li>
Beyond the exhibition itself, an integrated seminar platform will provide the opportunity to gain strategic ideas from across a wide range of relevant topical areas. These include sessions on ‘Current Topics Regarding the Development and Approval Review of New Drugs in Japan’; ‘Research and Development toward Creation of Innovative Drugs and Medical Devices’; ‘Preparing for an FDA Foreign Drug Inspection and Data Integrity’; ‘Conditions for foreign pharmaceutical industry to contribute to Japanese patients, market and economy’; and ‘For commercialization of innovative biologics’.
Silke Oeschger, Marketing and Communications Manager at Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd., an Indian manufacturer, commented: ‘CPhI Japan is a great place to meet and network with existing and new partners in the pharma industry. Last year we had a very active schedule, networking with good companies and exhibitors and pushing our business forwards during the 72hrs that we had - more importantly, the quality of the meetings was excellent. We had a very successful event in 2015 and look forward to coming back this year for CPhI Japan’s 15th anniversary.’
Andreas Mavrommatis at UBM EMEA said: ‘The Japanese pharma market is a balanced model of modern, innovative and generic products with an excellent reimbursement scheme for high value drugs. But there is the pre-requisite for companies wanting to enter the market to understand it fully beforehand. Japan is evolving and gradually lowering its healthcare spend through generic formulations. However, there is always an opportunity for new, patented drugs if they can demonstrate genuine benefits and cost efficiency as a firm. CPhI Japan helps international and domestic companies identify the best new opportunities in products, understand this complex market and provide better avenues for partnership and business.’
