6th Apr 2016 08:19
LONDON (Alliance News) - Taihua PLC on Wednesday said total sales fell in 2015 due to poor weather conditions hitting harvests at its two plantations.
Shares in Taihua were trading down 34% at 1.41 pence on Wednesday morning.
The China-based pharmaceutical company, which specialises in the cultivation of traditional Chinese medicine, said total sales in 2015 fell to CNY35.0 million from CNY53.1 million in 2014.
The combined harvest of its two plantations decreased to 704 tonnes from 1,145 tonnes which Taihua said was due to adverse weather conditions during winter and spring. It said it is working with research institutes to investigate ways that the harvest can be maximised in the future, including measures such as frost-resistant strains.
As a result of the poor harvest, overall revenue derived from forsythia dropped to CNY27.4 million from CNY43.3 million, with the entire harvest sold. The area where forsythia is harvested was the hardest hit by the poor weather, with other areas less affected.
Revenue for Bian Tong Pian and active pharmaceutical ingredients Paclitaxel and Homoharringtonine also slipped, but to a lesser extent, while sales of other traditional Chinese medicines rose slightly.
Taihua said it expects to spend 2016 still focused on "leveraging" the good manufacturing practice re-certification secured for its products in January, following its drug production permit having been revoked in 2015.
In particular, Taihau will focus on recovering market share for its Homoharringtonine product and expanding distribution of Bain Tong Pian.
"The sales of both of these products have been severely constrained by the unstable GMP environment which has now come to an end," Taihua said in a statement.
By Karolina Kaminska; [email protected] @KarolinaAllNews
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