The convergence of the pharmaceutical and the food industry through functional food: Strategic change and business opportunity or an illusion?

Currently the pharmaceutical industry is undergoing dramatic strategic changes, affecting the entire life science sector. In this paper the strategic change of the pharmaceutical industry is studied through the convergence of the food and pharmaceutical industry from the point of functional food. Our primary focus is on the European market. Starting from the life-sciences concept, several questions will be discussed: What are functional foods? Does functional food offer real business opportunities for pharmaceuticals? How far apart are the two industries. Are there real synergies to be found or are the two industries antagonistic? © 2002 - Network of Centres for Study of Pharmaceutical Law.