Kodak to make medicinal ingredients on large-scale, US govt loans $765m to company

Kodak, the famous maker of cameras and shooting equipment has stepped into the medicine industry. With camera sales on the decline, as smartphones now come equipped with high-tech cameratechnology, Kodak has moved on to drug making.

Recently, the company received a loan of $765m from the US government in a bid to ease this transition.The company is set to produce the basic ingredients used in coronavirus drugs, especially used to treat the symptoms.

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Reducing dependency on foreign supply

The US government announced the loan in a bid to reduce dependence on foreign countries for medical supplies. Most countries receive medicines from India and other Asian countries. However, with no 100 per cent effective medicine in the ropes, this remains a hit-and-trial effort.

In the aftermath of this announcement, the shares of the company increased by 60 per cent. Multiple Pharma companies are currently working on vaccines, with large-scale trials already underway. Russia, for instance, may make its state-backed vaccine public as early as August, making it the first in any country.

The company’s executive chairman Jim Continenza announced, “Kodak is proud to be a part of strengthening America's self-sufficiency in producing the key pharmaceutical ingredients we need to keep our citizens safe”.

After launching Kodak Pharmaceuticals, the executive said that to achieve large-scale production of medicinal ingredients, the company would need three to four years.

The White House pushed for self-dependence."If we have learned anything from the global pandemic, it is that Americans are dangerously dependent on foreign supply chains for their essential medicines," said Peter Navarro, a White House spokesman.

Most important deal: Trump

The US president, Donald Trump hailed it as “one of the most important deals in the history of US pharmaceutical industries”. He also referred to Kodak as “a great American company”, while invoking the sentiment of remembrance among people - “you remember this company”.

Earlier, another camera making company Fujifilm moved on to the Pharma industry. The Japanese company has begun experiments on vaccines, with trials underway.

Kodak dates back to 1888, when it was founded as “The Eastman Kodak Company” by George Eastman. Owing to its classic cameras, it became a global household name for photography.

Owing to the shift in the industry which now favours digital photography, the company has struggled over the last two decades. In 2012, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in the US. It started making drug ingredients four years ago, but hadn’t thought of expanding production until after the pandemic hit.