High maize starch prices pinch pharma companies

The pharmaceuticals industry is feeling the burden of high prices with the prices of maize starch-based pharma raw materials sky-rocketing in recent months. The prices of sorbitol and vitamins have increased by 25 to 50 per cent in the last couple of months.

"Maize starch prices have gone up the world over by around 30 per cent in the last two months and it has resulted in price increase in most of the maize starch-based items such as sorbitol and vitamins," said Umed Doshi, a veteran in pharma raw materials business.

Sorbitol was available at Rs 24 a kg two months ago and it is currently quoting at Rs 38 in the local market. Sorbitol, which has about 60 per cent of the sweetness level of sugarcane, is substituted as a nutritive sweetener in food products, especially in those that cater to diabetic patients. Sorbitol is also an effective replacement for glycerin and other chemical stabilisers in a cross section of industries.

Citric acid is another starch-based material and its CIF prices have gone up from $625 two months ago to $700 a tonne. "We depend on imports, mainly from China, for citric acid," said a dealer in citric acid.

Citric acid is extensively used in the food and the pharmaceuticals industries. The Chinese suppliers anticipate prices for January shipment to further rise to $ 750 a tonne, owing to a drastic increase in the prices of corn.

Lactose is quoted at $2,200 a tonne and no shipments are available for the near future. Its local prices have gone up from Rs 50 earlier to the level of Rs 150 a kg.

A similar situation persists in vitamins also. Vitamin B1 hydro prices have gone up from $18 to $25 a kg. In the local market, prices are quoted at Rs 1,500 a kg. Vitamin B1 mono in the international market is priced around $23 compared with $17 a kg earlier and its domestic prices are around Rs 1,150.

Vitamin B2, which was $20 earlier, is now $37, while its local prices are about Rs 1,750 a kg. Cefatoxin prices rose from $90 to $115 with the local prices at the Rs 5,800 a kg level. Levofloxacin is quoted between $50-55 and its local prices are about Rs 2,850.

If the current shortage of corn prevails, the situation is likely to be similar to that in 2004. But, this time, the prices are increasing much faster than those of 2004, said an indentor of pharma raw materials.