AGP says Counterfeit Azomax triggered misleading safety concerns

July 17, 2026 (MLN): AGP Limited (PSX: AGP) moved to reassure investors after reports linking its flagship antibiotic Azomax to quality concerns stemmed from a counterfeit product rather than medicine manufactured by the company. 

The drugmaker said a Punjab Directorate of Drugs Control alert issued on July 8 referred to a fake Azomax (Azithromycin) batch recovered from an unauthorized source rather than a genuine product manufactured by the company, the company's filing on PSX today stated. 

AGP said the government notice explicitly identified the seized medicine as a product only "purported to be manufactured" by the company and confirmed that it did not belong to the genuine manufacturer.

Following an examination of the recovered samples, including packaging, serialization and security features, the company said it concluded the medicine was counterfeit and had informed regulators while requesting legal action against those responsible for its manufacture and distribution.

The company said the incident does not constitute a product quality failure, manufacturing defect, recall or regulatory action against AGP or any of its products.

AGP added that the matter has no impact on its manufacturing operations, regulatory approvals, product quality systems or commercial activities, noting that all products continue to be produced at Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)-compliant facilities.

Azomax generates more than Rs5 billion in annual sales, making it one of the company's largest brands. AGP said the product continues to perform strongly despite what it described as a malicious misinformation campaign.

The pharmaceutical company said it has deployed multiple anti-counterfeit technologies on Azomax packaging, including a color-shifting security logo, CRISMA security technology, covert machine-readable printing and serialized track-and-trace features to authenticate genuine products throughout the supply chain.

AGP said it will continue working with the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), provincial drug control authorities and law enforcement agencies to combat counterfeit medicines, while reserving the right to pursue legal action against those responsible for producing fake products or disseminating misleading information.

Copyright Mettis Link News