Bio-tech company eyes Halal hub in Brunei

Against the backdrop of Brunei's Halal brand initiative and the US$200 billion Halal market, the country now seems to be venturing into the bio-industry with the introduction of technology that may revolutionise medical care, with special considerations to Halal regulations.

At the invitation of the Brunei Economic Development Board, Transcu Ltd, a Singapore-based bio-technology company, gave a presentation yesterday at the iCentre on the development of its revolutionary system for non-invasive delivery of medicine into the human body.

Led by its CEO, Mr Akihiko Matsumura, the delegation arrived yesterday with the intent of exploring the possibility of partnerships with Brunei investors as well as the feasibility of locating a manufacturing plant and distribution hub in Brunei.

"The BEDB is aggressively seeking to attract high value added investments to Brunei in line with our mission to create new opportunities for our people," said Dato Paduka Timothy Ong, Acting Chairman of the BEDB, who was present to welcome the delegation.

Transcu Ltd with subsidiaries in Japan and USA specialises in the development of Drug Delivery System (DDS) technologies. The non-invasive transdermal drug delivery systems efficiently delivers drugs for a wide variety of medical and cosmetic applications, replacing the existing conventional methods such as injections, oral administrations and patches.

These systems solve issues usually experienced through conventional methods as it eliminates pain and risks of infection with rare instances of side-effects. They are also cost competitive and do not require the help of a healthcare professional.

Transcu's first original pharmaceutical product, iontophoretic local anasthesia (Lidocaine and epinephrine), is currently awaiting US FDA approval in the next year, with about 15 other products still awaiting clinical trials.

In an interview, the CEO, Mr Matsumura, remarked on Brunei's potential in bio-industry. "This is our chance and starting point to collaborate and cultivate the industry in Brunei," he said. "In other countries we have collaborated with, we have established manufacturing agents to produce our product. In Korea and Taiwan, we have the biggest pharmaceutical companies in each country," he added.

The company has agents in the US, Europe, China, Indonesia and have just recently concluded agreements with Indonesia. The current biggest issue the company is now embarking on is the manufacturing of drugs for Muslim countries. "Manufacturing drugs for Muslim countries is different from other countries, so agents are required to manufacture these drugs and devices," said Mr Matsumura, adding that the products also require local Halal accreditation.

The presentation was also attended by the Minister of Health, Pehin Orang Kaya Indera Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Haji Suyoi bin Haji Osman, the Managing Director of the Brunei Investment Agency (BIA), Dr Amin Liew Abdullah, the Chairman of the Sungai Liang Authority, Pengiran Kerma Raja Pengiran Haji Kamarulzaman, and CEO of BEDB, Mr Vincent Cheong.