REORGANIZATION OF THE GDR PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000700030022-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: R
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 17, 2011
• Sequence Number: 22
• Publication Date: November 6, 1951
• Content Type: REPORT

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SECURITY ftTr7
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGE CYCN RESTRj
INFORMATION FROM
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS CD NO.
COUNTRY
German Democratic Republic DATE OF
INFORMATION
1951
SUBJECT
HOW
Economic - Chemicals,
pharmaceuticals
DATE DIST. 6
Nov 1951
PUBLISHED
WHERE
PUBLISHED
Monthly periodical
Duesseldorf
NO. OF PAGES
3
DATE
PUBLISHED
Jan 1951
LANGUAGE
German
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
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The pharmaceutical supply situation in the German Democratic Republic is
critical. Pharmaceutical plants are unable to cope with the demand fur eveu
the most important products. There is an acute shortage of sulfanilamide, para-
aminosalic acid, hormone and vitamin preparations, local anesthetics, and other
important preparations. It is up to the GDR planning authorities to alleviate
these shortages by expanding the pharmaceutical industry, in which 1951 invest-
ments are to be six times greater than in 1949. Special stress has been placed
on the production of penicillin, which is now sufficient to supply Soviet Zone
needs. Production of other important medications such as Tb 1/698, paraamino-
salic acid, and vitamins has been stepped up. To ensure an adequate supply of
narcotics, the cultivation of poppies for the production of morphine is being
encouraged by offers of special premiums. However, because of a poor harvest
the yield was far below expectations.
The shortage of high-grade pharmaceuticals has led to the establishment
of enterprises which, lacking the necessary qualified personnel and proper pro-
duction means, have placed on the market widely advertised preparations of dubi-
ous quality. Some of the better-equipped establishments have also put out in-
ferior products because of the scarcity or poor quality of available rair mate-
rials.
These conditions have led to the introduction of long-planned reforms in
the pharmaceutical industry. The decree of 5 October 1949 pertaining to the
regulation and supervision of trade in medicinal supplies provides that all
pharmaceuticals produced after 1 January 1951 be submitted to the Ministry of
Labor and Public Health for testing and subsequent recording in a register main-
tained by the ministry. Since the promulgation of this decree, approximately
4,500 various preparations have been recorded by 510 enterprises. An estimated
40-60 percent of the pharmaceutical plants, anticipating that their products
would not pass official tests, did not bother to submit them. According to
these figures, some 700-800 enterprises in the GDR are engaged in the production
of pharmaceuticals. The Soviet Zone places a value of approximately 160 million
East marks on 1948 production, and of approximately 200 million East marks on the
1949 output of pharmaceuticals.
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Alth~:'gh there had been little doubt that the pharmaceutical industry was
earmarked for streamlining, the reforms were more drastic than had been an-
ticipated. Of the 510 enterprises submitting their products for testing, only
200 were registered, as illustrated by the following table:
No of Enterprises
Who Recorded Their
Products
No of Enterprises
Whose Products Have
Been Approved
Sachsen
263
84
Sachsen-Anhalt
47
33
Berlin (East sector)
58
31
Thueringen
92
28
Brandenburg
38
16
Mecklenburg
?2
8
As will be noted, Sachsen has the largest number of pharmaceutical plants.
However, only nine of these enterprises are of significant size. They are the
VVB (Federation of People-Owned Enterprises) Alcid Chemische Fabrik von Heyden
(Von Hayden Alcid Chemical Plant) in Radebeul, VVB Pharma Pharmazeutisehe Werke
Gehe (Gehe Pharma Pharmaceutical Plant) in Dresden, WB Pharma Pharmazeutische
Werke Madaus in Radebeul, Otto Stumpf A.-G. in Leipzig, Dr Willmar Schwabe
(special pharmaceuticals), Saechsisches Serumwerk (Sachsen Serum Plant) in Dres-
den, Leo-Werke G.m.b.H. (Lea Bork=; -.td) in Dresden, Lingner-Werke G.m.b.H.
(Lingner Works, Ltd) in Dresden, and the VVB Pharma Vasencl Werk in Leipzig.
Sachsen-Anhalt's leading pharmaceutical plant is Organa V4B FaLlberg-List
it, Magdeburg. Otherb are VVB Pharma Asid /sic/ Serum institut in Dessau,
Chemiewerk Leuna A.-G. (for mineral fertilizers), Stickstoffwerk Piesteritz
(nitrogen plant) Farbenfabrik Wolfen (paint factory), and VVB Sapotex Deutsche
Hydrierwerke (hydrogenation plant), in Rodleben.
The most important East Berlin producers of pharmaceuticals are Kali-Chemie
in Niederschoeneweide, and VVB Pharma Schering A.-G. (and R. Schering), VVB
Pharma Chemical Factory, Gruenau and lemmler Plants, and Dr Renmler's Chemical
and ..harmaceutical Works, Berlin.
Thueringen's 140 pharmaceutical enterprises are of merely local significance.
Mony of them produce only household remedies After 1 January 1951, not more
than 3J percent of these establishments will be in operation, notable among them
VVB Jerapharm and the Promassol Works of the VVB for Paper and Chemical Products.
Of the Brandenburg chemical plants, only three are significant: Carmol Works
1 and II of VVB Chemie-Papier, VVB Pharma Pharmazeutische Werke Byk in Oranien-
burg, and Patermann Brothers Biomalz Factory in Teltow.
Mecklenburg does not have any pharmaceutical plants of more than local im-
portance.
Approved preparations numbered approximately 1,450 for the entire GDR, in-
cluding 180 various kinds of teas. Only products of different types were counted
in the foregoing total; identical products, i.e., goods packaged or prepared in
various ways, were not taken into consideration. Enterprises whose Goods were
not approved were forced to cease production on or before 31 December 1950.
With the number of producers reduced by 70 percent as a result of this ac-
tion, the entire structure of the ODE pharmaceutical industry underwent basic
changes. Most seriously affected were the privately owned enterprises whose
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high-quality products were frequently not approved, even if such products were
not manufactured elsewhere in East Cc tawny. Of the enterprises which have been
permitted to market their products after 1 January 1951, about one third are
people-owned or trustee-administered. The fact that all large-scale c:.emical-
pharmaceutical plants in the GDR are people-owned or SAG (Soviet Corporations)
highlights the preponderance of nationalized enterprises over private ones. A
similar preponderance is noted with respect to the proportion of products ap-
proved. Of 1,450 such products, more than one half have been produced by SAG
and people-owned enterprises.
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