The Female Health Company / HLL Lifecare Limited Receive NACO order for 1.5 Million Female Condoms

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The Female Health Company / HLL Lifecare Limited Receive National AIDS Control

Organization of India Order for 1.5 Million FC2 Female Condoms

Thursday April 23, 2009, 8:30 am EDT

CHICAGO, April 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Female Health Company (NYSE

Alternext: FHC) which manufactures and markets the FC1 and FC2 Female Condoms®,

today announces that its technical collaboration with HLL Lifecare Limited (HLL)

(formerly Hindustan Latex Limited) has been successful in winning another order

from the National AIDS Control Organization of India.

The order, for one and a half million (1,500,000) female condoms, will be

manufactured in HLL's factory in Kochi, India. The female condom will be " FC2 " ,

the Nitrile polymer version of FHC's female condom. (The technical collaboration

between the FHC and HLL has been partly funded by the British Government's

Department for International Development through the Business Linkages Challenge

Fund.

The fund shares costs and risk with business partnerships for improved

competitiveness, increased market access and to benefit the poor in Africa, Asia

and the Caribbean.

 

O.B. Parrish, Chairman and C.E.O. said that, " This order is the result of HLL's

and Hindustan Latex Family Planning Promotion Trust's (HLFPPT) continuing

commitment to make the female condom accessible to the men and women of India.

We are pleased to see the program's continuing growth and especially proud to

have enabled production to commence in India for the Indian market. This is the

first initiative of its kind. "

Mr. M. Ayyappan, Chairman and Managing Director, HLL Lifecare Limited stated,

" This NACO led FC Social Marketing initiative will enable millions of vulnerable

women to stay protected from HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. We

are extremely happy to supply the Female Condoms for the NACO supported program

from our commercial manufacturing facility set up at Kochi in collaboration with

FHC. "

About HLL Lifecare Limited

HLL Lifecare Limited (HLL) (www.lifecarehll.com), a government of India

enterprise, was incorporated in 1966 to make superior quality male condoms

widely available in India. Today, HLL is one of the world's largest

manufacturers of male condoms with an annual production capacity of over 1.3

billion pieces. HLL also manufactures oral contraceptive pills, intra-uterine

devices, blood transfusion bags, surgical sutures and rapid diagnostic kits.

Headquartered in Trivandrum, Kerala in South India, HLL has manufacturing

facilities with the ISO 9001:2000, ISO 13485:2003 and environmental management

system certifications. HLL has the FDA 510(K) registration, CE Mark, KITE mark

an, SABS mark for Male condoms. Today, HLL is the leading social marketing

organization in the country in the area of contraceptives - with a market share

of over 65 percent in the rural and semi urban markets.

HLL had recently tied up with the New York-based philanthropic venture Acumen

Fund to set up a chain of low-cost high quality hospitals under 'Lifespring'

brand in rural India. HLL's brand today reach over 500,000 retail outlets in

India and are being exported to over 115 countries today.

About The Female Health Company

The Female Health Company, based in Chicago, Illinois, manufactures and markets

the FC Female Condom® (FC1) and the FC2 Female Condom (FC2), which are primarily

distributed by public health organizations and donor groups in over 90

developing countries around the world.

Globally, the Female Condoms are available in various programs in 116 countries.

The Company owns certain worldwide rights to the FC Female Condom®, including

patents that have been issued in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan,

France, Italy, Germany, Spain, the European Patent Convention, the People's

Republic of China, Canada, South Korea and Australia.

FC1 and FC2 Female Condoms® are the only available FDA-approved products

controlled by a woman that offer dual protection against sexually transmitted

diseases, including HIV/AIDS, and unintended pregnancy.

 

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