China is a drugmaker's puzzle. Its drug market is growing by leaps and bounds, expected to double by 2010. It's full of cheap labor. It's made strides toward protecting intellectual property. But with recall after recall cementing China's public image as land of the toxins, quality control could be a big issue. Plus, the risk of counterfeiting is real; witness the recent appropriation of the Colgate brand.
According to a new report from Pricewaterhouse Coopers, most of Big Pharma is sinking big money into Asian facilities, including plenty in China. Pfizer, Baxter, Bayer, and Roche have invested in Chinese manufacturing plants. But, analysts say, made-in-China drugs might not make it past the FDA. And what's cheap labor compared with the cost of contamination?
- read the report on China from CNN