HANOVER/BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - Because of supply problems with quite a few important medicines, the chemical union IG BCE is calling for the creation of a strategic pharmaceutical reserve for Europe. "Germany was once the pharmacy of the world, we are no longer," said chairman Michael Vassiliadis in Hanover on Monday. One needs one's own emergency stocks of central pharmaceutical products. "This must now be discussed together." Also needed, he said, is multiple-security production of "supply-critical active ingredients" for which there is sometimes only one plant in the world.

There have recently been shortages of some basic medicines, such as painkillers and fever-relieving juices for children, and in some cases also of cancer drugs. Basic substances in particular are now coming from India or China. Vassiliadis said that an early warning system would be helpful in this "strategic field. In the future, security of supply must be a core criterion.

This also means that price models can be adjusted if necessary. In this context, the head of the IG-BCE union advocated a "differently organized relationship" between research-based pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers of generic drugs - it must be possible to make the pricing system "more flexible" depending on the supply situation. Original active ingredients, for which there is initially long-term patent protection, are often more expensive.

The pharmaceutical industry and the chemical industry as a whole, Germany's third-largest industrial sector, need more reliable planning on which technologies to prioritize in the coming years. Enormous increases in gas and electricity bills had put many companies under pressure, and politicians needed to discuss the future of the industry at the highest level. "That's why we also expect Chancellor Scholz to meet with us in perspective," Vassiliadis said. "This is not just about crisis management, but about the question: where do we want to go with this industry?"

With companies such as the Mainz-based corona vaccine manufacturer Biontech, he said, Germany also has "companies that are very innovative and need good framework conditions so that they can move forward." In light of international dependencies, he said, talks are needed on the positioning of the energy-intensive industry as a whole. "I believe this should take place under the fundamental leadership of the Chancellor's Office," the union chief said. Although gas supplies are currently stabilizing again, he said, they are far from out of the woods.

Especially in view of the U.S. billion-euro subsidies, he said, Europe must develop a new industrial policy. "We won't get anywhere with the eternal mantra of wanting to be the leader in ensuring competition alone," Vassiliadis recently told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur. He said he missed "more courage to invest in the climate-friendly transformation on a truly broad basis." Now he added: "We need a roadmap and definition of how we position ourselves in the global market. We also need to think about some regulations - not always individual compromises that are unsystematic."

For energy supply, he said, "With three or four LNG terminals, the issue is not done." And policymakers need to address some contradictions, he said. "We're now discovering fracking in the U.S., driving gas halfway around the globe, but here at home we don't want fracking." Underground storage of CO2 and building our own hydrogen capacity also need to be discussed more broadly, he said.

In addition, he said, many plants have significant staffing problems. "We need every person who can do something," Vassiliadis said, calling for a better work-life balance. He also said that the influx of qualified skilled workers and training and continuing education programs for young people were often not yet going well. "Employment effects will come," he said - but not necessarily in the form of direct job losses. Difficulties would arise especially for companies without major alternative sources of energy and special raw materials./jap/DP/mis