A leading healthcare company and CRO in India are collaborating to make the country's first nutritional R&D center. The Abbott Nutrition R&D Center is an effort between Abbott Laboratories ($ABT) and Syngene to develop nutritional products while expanding Abbott's nutrition portfolio at the same time.
Syngene will provide a science-based research and innovation team that will work closely with Abbott researchers in the endeavor. Once completed next month, the Bangalore facility will house 50 scientists and researchers.
Focusing on nutritional products will be sure to make an impact on India, where an estimated 50% of its population (think 570 million people) fail to consume adequate nutrients in their daily diets. In addition, India is facing a rising problem with diabetes, a disease 51 million individuals there live with, giving it the world's largest diabetic population.
"With malnutrition and common chronic diseases at their highest in this region, Abbott and Syngene have a common vision and commitment to support the development of a healthier India," remarked Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder, chairwoman and managing director of the Biocon Group, of which Syngene is a subsidiary. "The combined market insights and nutrition science expertise of our two organizations will enable us to address these immediate needs by developing critically important, innovative-yet-affordable nutrition products for the Indian population."
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