Philip Morris buys Fertin Pharma, a specialist in nicotine substitutes

Philip Morris International (PMI) announced Thursday 1^er July having reached an agreement of 813 million dollars for the acquisition of the company Fertin Pharma by the end of 2021[1]. PMI is thus gaining a foothold in the pharmaceutical world and will have a significant fund of oral delivery products.

Fertin is originally a Swedish company specializing in chewing gum (V6 brand), bought in 1978 by the Danish group Bagger-Sørensen, also a specialist in the field. Founded in 1915 by Holger Sørensen, the company Vejle Caramel- og Tabletfabrik marketed its first chewing gums in 1927, before taking the name Dansk Tyggegummifabrik A/S and, in 1939, the trade name Dandy[2A major player in the confectionery sector, the group, which later became Gumlink, is behind the Stimerol, Dandy and Virol gum brands, which it sold to the Cadbury-Schweppes group in 2002.

From chewing gum to nicotine substitutes

It was at the beginning of the 1990s that Fertin ventured into the pharmaceutical field by developing its first nicotine substitutes in the form of chewing gums, which quickly became its flagship products. Having become Fertin Pharma, the company distanced itself from the Gumlink group in 2001; the Bagger-Sørensen family will nevertheless keep 30% of the capital of Fertin Pharma in 2017, when the latter is taken over by the investment fund EQT Mid Market.

Fertin Pharma developed strongly during the 2010s and invested in India: a research and development center was opened in Mumbai in 2011, and a production unit was established in Goa in 2014. It was also in 2014 that Fertin Pharma Pharma founded its Nicotine Research Center, which aims to develop new nicotine delivery systems.

Innovations in oral treatments

These infrastructures will allow Fertin Pharma to design its current products, which are of particular interest to Philip Morris. In its catalog, Fertin Pharma offers not only chewing gums, but also sucking gums (under the name “diamonds”), sucking sachets (“pouches”), double-layer compressed gums, as well as as fast distribution tablets (under the name Zapliq). These different systems designed to deliver nicotine have also been developed for other pharmaceutical uses, whether vitamins, analgesics, allergy treatments or gums to avoid “mouth” syndrome. dry" linked to certain anticancer treatments (radiation against neck and brain tumors)[3]. Fertin Pharma has also filed numerous patents, two of which intended for medical or “wellness” cannabinoids have been approved in Canada for its subsidiary NordicCan[4].

A wealth of opportunities for PMI

The wide range of products held by Fertin Pharma interests PMI in more than one way. In addition to offering it a stepping stone towards the pharmaceutical world, it will allow it on the one hand to expand its range of non-smoked nicotine products, which can be extended to other worlds than that of nicotine alone, and on the other hand to benefit from valuable expertise for numerous oral delivery products. Whether it is “pouches” or double-layer gums, Fertin Pharma has in fact developed different techniques for more or less rapid diffusion of substances (including caffeine or analgesics), but also for masking tastes or undesirable effects, in particular to reduce irritation due to the delivery of nicotine.

Fertin Pharma's work in terms of intellectual property or arguments on "residue-free" products, adapted to non-smoking or anti-vaping laws, also has something to appeal to the tobacco company. Fertin Pharma's positioning in medical and well-being also opens the way to numerous product development possibilities and could provide new opportunities for PMI's current commercial discourse, anchored on a promise of risk reduction.

In the cannabis niche, PMI, which had until now restricted itself to investing in the therapeutic cannabis segment, could thus extend its range of non-smoked products to recreational cannabis[5]. We can assume that the heavy investments made in Canada by the Altria and British American Tobacco groups in the therapeutic and recreational cannabis sector do not leave PMI indifferent. The gradual reduction in the market for smoked cigarettes is sufficient reason for tobacco manufacturers to look into all other delivery systems for nicotine – or other substances. PMI, which until now had only fifty employees in Denmark, is establishing itself strongly in this country where it has already acquired in May 2021 the Danish snus producer AG Snus Aktieselskab[6].

  Keywords: PMI, Fertin Pharma, nicotine substitutes, pouches, cannabis ©Tobacco Free Generation

M.F.

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[1] PMI, Philip Morris International Announces Agreement to Acquire Fertin Pharma, Press release. Published on 1^er July 2021, accessed July 2, 2021. [2] Wikipedia, Fertin Pharma. Accessed July 2, 2021. [3] Fertin Pharma, Can chewing gum make a difference for cancer patients? Accessed July 2, 2021. [4] Fertin Pharma, NordicCan Secures Two Patents issued by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office for the Administration of Cannabinoids through Oral Dosage Formats. Published on April 22, 2021, accessed on July 2, 2021. [5] Generation Without Tobacco, Philip Morris could enter the marijuana business. Published on May 5, 2021, accessed on July 2, 2021. [6] Mazanti-Andersen, AG Snus Aktieselskab sold to Phillip Morris International. Published on May 7, 2021, accessed on July 2, 2021. National Committee Against Smoking |