Novo Nordisk is a focused healthcare company. With the broadest diabetes product portfolio in the industry, Novo Nordisk is a world leader in diabetes care. In addition, Novo Nordisk has a leading position within haemostasis management, growth disorders and hormone replacement therapy.

Our production is based on biotechnology; fermentation is the basis of our pharmaceuticals, using genetically modified microorganisms.

Novo Nordisk’s net turnover in 2001 was close to DKK 24 billion. We market our products in 179 countries, and 99% of sales take place outside Denmark.

Our worldwide market share in insulin is 45%, and our market share in diabetes care is 14%, reflecting 5% in the USA, 35% in Europe and 25% in Japan.
Headquartered in Denmark and represented in 68 countries on five continents, Novo Nordisk employs more than 16,000 people worldwide. 65% work in Denmark, where most of the production takes place. The remaining production sites are in the USA, France, Japan, China and South Africa.

Graph: Novo Nordisk sales per therapy area

Product portfolio
Insulin, insulin analogues and devices for injection of insulin constitute 91% of sales in diabetes care. The rest is made up of NovoNorm® (Prandin® in the USA), an oral treatment for Type 2 diabetes.

Two new devices for insulin injection therapy were launched in 2001: InDuo®, the world’s first combined insulin injection system and blood glucose monitor, produced and marketed in partnership with LifeScan Inc., and FlexPen®, a new prefilled insulin injection device which is set to replace the current NovoLet® pen.

Two other products are InnoLet® and Innovo®, both insulin dosers targeting different groups of insulin users. More advanced products are increasingly available to people with diabetes, such as our rapid-acting insulin analogue NovoRapid® (NovoLog® in the USA).

In 2001, a number of significant late stage projects reached important milestones: NN622, a novel dual-acting insulin sensitiser entered Phase 3 development in November. Furthermore, AERx® iDMS, a pulmonary insulin delivery system, currently developed with Aradigm orporation, has obtained Proof of Concept, and Phase 3 trials are expected to start in 2002.

NovoSeven® is increasingly being used for the treatment of acquired haemophilia. Also, confidence in its use for surgical procedures is growing, and a number of NovoSeven® clinical studies have been initiated.

Human growth hormone products are marketed by Novo Nordisk under the names Norditropin® and Norditropin® SimpleXx®. In hormone replacement therapy (HRT), our products include Activelle®, Vagifem® and Novofem™, a new, low-dose, sequential HRT to be launched across Europe in 2002.

Ownership structure
Novo Nordisk’s ownership is split between A shares and B shares. Novo Nordisk’s A shares are held by Novo A/S, a private Danish limited liability company which is wholly owned by the Novo Nordisk Foundation. Novo Nordisk’s B shares are quoted on the Copenhagen and London Stock Exchanges, and on the New York Stock Exchange as American Depository Receipts (ADRS).

In 2000, the enzyme division of Novo Nordisk was demerged, and Novozymes is now a sister company that is separately listed on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange.

The two companies maintain a common set of core values, ‘the Charter for companies in the Novo Group’, and a common corporate governance system.

Graph: The Novo Group ownership structure