Preparing for Zika As summer approaches, suppliers and marketers share strategies for combating disease-carrying mosquitoes. Ava Caridad, Editorial Director Sales of insect repellent have risen sharply since Brazilian authorities in November flagged a potential link between the mosquito-borne Zika virus and suspected cases of microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size in newborns that can result in developmental problems. Zika is carried by the Aedes aegypti species of mosquitoes. According to Reuters, Raia Drogasil, Brazil’s largest chain of pharmacies, said repellent sales in December jumped seven-fold from a year earlier. Brazil’s biggest retailer, the Pao de Acucar Group, said supermarket sales of repellent were up 120% in the first weeks of 2016, compared to the same period a year earlier. In Rio de Janeiro, protection against Zika is a top priority for the city’s 6.5 million inhabitants and hundreds of thousands of tourists as the city prepares to host the Olympic Games in August. Even at small local pharmacies in Rio de Janeiro, waiting lists for the most sought-after repellent, Exposis, stretch to hundreds of names, with expectant mothers visiting numerous stores in search of the product. French company Osler has hiked production of its Exposis brand at its Brazilian facilities 28-fold since the beginning of 2016. Instead of importing Exposis’ active ingredient from Germany by ship, as it did before the Zika scare, Osler now flies it in by plane. Osler said it plans to enter nine other countries this year—including the U.S., Colombia and Mexico—as concern over Zika spreads. Since it was detected in Brazil in April 2015, the virus has spread to 26 countries in the Americas. The World Health Organization declared Zika an international health emergency, citing a “strongly suspected” relationship between the virus in pregnancy and microcephaly. It warned that Zika is spreading and could infect as many as four million people in the Americas. Marketers make a contribution… Marketers are stepping up to donate insect repellent products to affected areas to stave off infection. SC Johnson (SCJ) announced it will donate at least $15 million over the next year to provide products to help needy families combat the mosquitoes that may carry the Zika virus. “Since the Zika outbreak began in Brazil and has spread to other countries, we have ramped up our global production to help ensure an adequate supply of our products is available in stores, and more importantly, for a donation such as this,” said SCJ Chairman & CEO Fisk Johnson. Additionally, SCJ announced in February its donation of 54,000 units of OFF! insect repellent to the County of Hawaii Civil Defense Agency to help protect against the Aedes aegypti species of mosquitoes, which may also carry dengue fever. More than 250 cases have been reported as of early February. 18 Spray April 2016 Australian insect repellent manufacturer Bushman has become an official supplier to the Australian Olympic Team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Jamestrong Packaging supplies aerosol cans to Bushman, which will initially provide 1,000 units of its Heavy Duty repellent product to Australian Olympic Team athletes and officials. Bushman’s Australian Olympic Committee sponsorship follows an International Olympic Committee (IOC) advisory in January 2016 warning about the Zika virus outbreak in South America. The IOC has issued guidelines to National Olympic Committees to protect the health of athletes and visitors. That’s when Bushman Managing Director Andrew Raper said the company was approached by the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) medical director to supply Bushman Heavy Duty Repellent. In March, Spectrum Brands, Inc.–Pet, Home & Garden Division, the maker of Cutter and Repel repellents, announced a donation of 55,000 units of mosquito repellent for people in the affected areas of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The donation is being coordinated by the Consumer Specialty Products Association (CSPA). “In addition to our product donation, we’ve also significantly increased our repellent production plan to ensure that our retail partners in the U.S. will avoid any out-of-stocks,” explained Eric Kenney, Division VP, Spectrum Pet, Home & Garden Division. Meeting demand Industry insiders are preparing for a rise in sales of repellent and insecticides once the mosquito season starts in the southern U.S. in March or April, then rolls northwards as temperatures rise. Already, sales of outdoor insect/rodent control products at U.S. multi-outlets rose 11.21% to $516.1 million for the 52 weeks ending Jan. 24, 2016, according to data compiled by IRI. According to USA Today, Wisconsin Pharmacal, the licensee of Coleman-branded insect repellents, has invested in almost another year’s worth of product—everything from aerosol cans to spray formula ingredients to end-of-aisle retail displays—to get ahead of the pest problem. SCJ had planned to have its factories running at full capacity by the end of February, an unusually-high production schedule for this time of year, said Kelly Semrau, Senior VP of Corporate Affairs & Sustainability. “We have purchased more components and more ingredients than we would ever have at this point,” she said. The company has experienced significantly higher orders from retail customers in southern states compared to the same time last year. It expects that
Spray April 2016
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