Takeda Pharmaceutical to sell OTC and non-core products to Orifarm

Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceutical has agreed to sell a portfolio of 110 non-core over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription pharmaceutical products it sells in Europe along with a couple of manufacturing plants in Denmark and Poland to Orifarm Group for up to $670 million.

As per the terms of the deal, Orifarm will pay nearly $505 million to the Japanese pharma company in cash at closing, and nearly $70 million in non-contingent cash to be paid within four years after its closing. Apart from that, Takeda Pharmaceutical could receive up to an additional $95 million in the form of potential milestone payments.

The portfolio to be sold to the Danish pharma company includes a range of OTC products and food supplements along with certain prescription products across the respiratory, anti-inflammatory, cardiovascular and endocrinology therapeutic areas. These products are predominantly sold across Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Sweden, Poland, Finland, the Baltics, and Austria.

According to Takeda Pharmaceutical, the portfolio being divested reported net sales of around $230 million in FY 2018 with strong sales recorded by cough/cold and vitamin OTC brands, and also the Warfarin and Levaxin prescription products.

The Japanese pharma giant said that although the products involved in the divestiture address important patient needs in the European countries, they are not within the company’s core business areas of gastroenterology (GI), rare diseases, oncology, plasma-derived therapies, and neuroscience.

Giles Platford – President of Europe & Canada Business Unit at Takeda Pharmaceutical said: “These divestments will enable us to further prioritize and reinforce efforts in our core business areas.

“Throughout the robust sale process we conducted for these assets, we focused on finding the right partner to maximize the value of these trusted products and maintain continuity of supply for the patients and customers who depend on them. We are confident that Orifarm is the right partner for these regions.”

For Orifarm, the acquisition marks the largest in its history and is said to enable it to future-proof its business by
bolstering its core business areas of parallel imported pharmaceuticals, over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, and prescription generic pharmaceuticals.

Erik Sandberg – CEO of Orifarm Group said: “Orifarm Group’s progress and record-breaking annual accounts in the recent years enables us to take this decisive step for the company’s future. It is a gigantic transaction for Orifarm and a game changer for Orifarm as a company.

“We will grow to a greater extent into a much more traditional manufacturing pharmaceutical company, and with the acquisition of both the line of products and two further manufacturing sites, we will be able to control a larger part of our value chain.”

Closing of the deal will be subject to customary legal and regulatory closing conditions.