THE ARTEMISININ ENTERPRISE - GHDonline

Supply chain timelines are exemplified in the figure below that describes the supply chain
timeline for Novartis’s AL.
Source: Wells L (June 2008). Coartem®‐the story so far. Global Access to Medicines Policy, Novartis International
AG.
Artemisinin prices and supply chain economics
In recent years the price for artemisinin has been highly volatile and this has had a major
impact on the stability of the supply chain, providing both a large incentive and also a
disincentive for Artemisia growers. The market price of artemisinin is directly linked to
demand forecasts and existing supplies and there are now new predictions from the RBM
PSM Working Group of shortages of supply of artemisinin in the near future with the risk
that the instabilities will remain.
Much of the available information on supply chain economics is anecdotal and focused on
small elements within the supply chain. The information does not represent a holistic
overview of the whole supply chain. Since the AE Conference there has not been time to
undertake a detailed and rigorous analysis of supply chain economics, however, this is
considered to be a vital component in understanding and assessing the future impact of the
integration of the three AE technologies. It is therefore our view that there is an urgent need
for a detailed technical paper looking at the economics along the supply chain from the seed
producer through to the extractor. It is also essential that this review assesses and
demonstrates the impact of changes in the price of artemisinin on the production cost of
ACTs.
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