List Of Pharmaceutical Companies in Canada (2023)

Pharmaceutical Companies in Canada – The pharmaceutical sector is one of the most active and innovative industries in Canada. It is made up of companies developing and manufacturing innovative medicines and pharmaceutical products. The pharmaceutical sector is made up of a number of sub-sectors that service different market areas. These include brand-name giant pharmaceutical companies, generic (over the counter )drug firms, biopharmaceutical small and medium-sized enterprises (culture farms, laboratories, etc), and also contract research organizations (CROs) and even contract manufacturing organizations (CRO-CMOs). Which are similar to laboratories, and research firms but with an eye for manufacturing.

These are very good figures for the Canadian pharmaceutical sector, and the Canadian economy overall. But who are the companies behind these impressive and positive state of affairs in the Canadian pharmaceutical industry? We cannot in this one post cover all the players in the Canadian pharmaceutical industry, but what we can do is highlight the major players, and the impact they have made so far in the field of medicine, and also the contributions they have made to the Canadian economy through sales.

List Of Pharmaceutical Companies in Canada

Company Names, Sales, and Major Pharmaceutical Products

  • 1. Johnson & Johnson/Actelion Pharmaceuticals: Total sales are in excess of 3.22 billion dollars, market share in Canada is 11.70.
  • 2. Novartis Pharmaceuticals: Total sales 1.39 billion dollars, and market share is 5.10 percent of the total volume of the Canadian market. One of the company’s leading products is Lucentis, which is an important medical product for Ophthalmology, and which contributed the sum of 311.0 million dollars to the company’s total sales figure for the year 2017.
  • 3. Merck/Cubist Pharmaceuticals: Total sales 1.31 billion dollars, and market share is 4.80 percent of the total volume of the Canadian market. One of their leading products is Remicade, which is an Anti-arthritic treatment, and which contributed 1,107.0 million dollars in sales for the company in the year 2017.
  • 4. Apotex Pharmaceuticals: Total sales are at 1.26 billion dollars, and market share is 4.60 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market.
  • 5. Pfizer/Hospira Pharmaceuticals: Pfizer is a pharmaceutical giant known all over the world. They are heavily involved in the research and development aspect of the business, and have several patents to their name, in many fields of medicine. Total sales are at 1.18 billion dollars, while the market share is at 4.30 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market.
  • 6. Teva/Cobalt/Actavis Pharmaceuticals: Total sales are at 1.10 billion dollars, while the market share is at 4.00 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market.
  • 7. Gilead Pharmaceuticals: Total sales is at 1.05 billion dollars, while the market share is at 3.80 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market. One of their leading products is Epclusa, which is a medical treatment which promotes Liver Health, and which contributed 499.0 million dollars to the total sales of the company for the year 2017.
  • 8. Roche Pharmaceuticals: Total sales is at 0.99 billion dollars, while the market share is at 3.60 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market. One of their leading products is Rituxan, which is an Autoimmune booster, often recommended for those who have fallen sick as a result of exposure to drugs. The drug has contributed 257.0 million dollars to the companies total sales for the year 2017.
  • 9. Bayer Pharmaceuticals: This is a popular and international company, with presence in America, Canada, West and Central Africa, and indeed a brand that is known all over the world. Total sales are at 0.96 billion dollars, while market share is 3.50 percent of the total volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market. One of the leading products is Eylea which is a leading drug in the field of Ophthalmology, and which contributed 401.0 in sales to the company for the year 2017.
    Another leading product which is a major asset to Bayer Pharmaceuticals is Stelara which is an Autoimmune booster, often prescribed to patients who have fallen ill as a result of exposure to bacterial and viral infection. The drugs boost the immune system, aiding the patient to full and quick recovery. The product contributed a further 273.0 million dollars to the total sales of the company.
  • 10. AbbVie Pharmaceuticals: Total sales is at 0.90 billion dollars, while market share is at 3.30 percent of the volume of the Canadian pharmaceutical market. One of their leading products is Humira, which is an Anti- arthritic treatment, and which contributed 739.0 million dollars to the company’s sales in the year 2017.

Other pharmaceutical companies in Canada include:

  • Advanz Pharmaceuticals
  • Algorithme Pharmaceuticals
  • Angiotech Pharmaceuticals
  • Anongen Pharmaceuticals
  • Antibe Therapeutics
  • Apotex Pharmaceuticals
  • Arbutus Biopharma
  • Bausch Health
  • Biovail Pharmaceuticals
  • Buckleys Pharmaceuticals
  • Canadian Plasma Resources
  • Cynapsus Therapeutics
  • Empire Laboratories
  • IL Therapeutics
  • Nordion Pharmaceuticals
  • Odan Laboratories
  • Oncolytics Biotech
  • Painceptor Pharmaceuticals
  • Pharmascience
  • Somnogen Canada Incorporated
  • Telesta Therapeutics
  • Teva Canada Pharmaceuticals
  • Servier Pharmaceuticals
  • Amgen Pharmaceuticals
  • Astra Zeneca Pharmaceuticals
  • Thermo Fisher Scientific
  • Klick Health
  • Sanofi Adventis Pharmaceutical Company
  • Turnstone Biologics Corporation
  • ImpresPharma
  • Aurora Cannabis (Cannabis research and distribution)
  • Catalent Pharma Solutions (Cannabis research, packaging, and distribution)
  • Veeva Systems
  • ACTO Technologies
  • Cronos Group Incorporated
  • Namaste Technologies
  • Takeda Pharmaceuticals
  • Extendicare (Pharmaceutical research company)

Many of the Companies highlighted in this article have a presence in the international market and have gone on to become internationally recognized brands. As a matter of fact, From 2001 to 2018, pharmaceutical product exports between Canada and the rest of the world has increased by 33%.
Also, the United States is Canada’s main trading partner in the pharmaceutical sector, accounting for far more than half of the exports and 38 percent of imports. Another forty percent of imports come from the European Union.
More than 60% of Canada’s total health expenditures were made to hospitals, physicians and drugs.
Pharmaceuticals are the second largest part of health care spending, representing almost 16% of total expenses.
Although spending on pharmaceuticals continued to grow, the pace has slowed in recent years across provinces and territories in Canada.
According to the official 2017 PMPRB Annual Report, from years 2002 to 2017, total pharmaceutical sales (including non-patented over the counter medicines) in Canada have doubled to $27.0 billion, with 87.7 percent sold to retail drug stores and 12.3 percent sold to hospitals. Governments account for 42.7 percent of drug spending and private payers account for the remaining 57.3 percent (private company staff coverage and individuals) (IQVIA Pharmafocus 2022).
Cross-border internet based pharmacy sales between Canada and the U.S.A grew rapidly from 2000 to 2003, but have steadily declined since then. It fell by 2.7% from 2015 to 2016, reaching about $111.6 million, or slightly over 1.3% of total pharmaceutical products sales exports to the United States of America.

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