Novo Nordisk has stated that its flagship insulin brand Mixtard will continue to be available in India in vial form, even as the company phases out other delivery formats such as Penfill cartridges. The announcement comes amid widespread concern over the discontinuation of some of the country’s most-used insulin products.
Responding to TOI reports that it was withdrawing Mixtard—India’s top-selling insulin brand with annual sales of over Rs 800 crore, Novo Nordisk said in a statement. “In order to meet increasing patient demand and ensure a stable supply of our medicines, we have decided to consolidate our insulin portfolio. This will create space needed in our global manufacturing network,” “Hence, in this process, we are phasing out the Penfill.We acknowledge that this will be disruptive to people living with diabetes who rely on our treatments. However, by doing this now, we will increase the number of patients we reach with our insulin portfolio by many millions in the next decade,” it added.
This comes after reports that the Danish drugmaker was discontinuing Human Mixtard—India’s largest-selling insulin brand—and other older-generation insulins from the market. The TOI report noted that Human Mixtard, a Rs 800 crore brand despite being under price control, along with products like Actrapid, Insulatard, Insulin Detemir, Levemir, and Xultophy, would no longer be available in popular delivery formats such as pre-filled pens and cartridges (Penfill and FlexPen).
Read report: Novo Nordisk to phase out country’s largest insulin brand
The Danish pharmaceutical giant reassured patients that the insulin, along with other human insulins like Actrapid and Insulatard, will still be accessible in vials across India. These vials are administered through traditional syringes.
According to documents cited in the earlier report, Novo Nordisk had informed its marketing partner Abbott India that the products would be withdrawn once current stocks were exhausted, a process expected to take around six months. The move is reportedly part of the company’s global strategy to shift focus toward newer, more profitable treatments such as Ozempic and Wegovy, which it plans to introduce in the Indian market this year. As part of this shift, earlier-generation insulin products are being gradually phased out worldwide.