Female Health Company makes case for female condom, posts Q3 profits

The Female Health Company, manufactures and marketers of the female condom FC2, made a business case for the product at the just concluded 2014 AIDS conference in Melbourne, saying the ‘woman-centric’ strength and benefits of FC2 “far out ways its cost.”

Meanwhile, financial results for the Female Health Company released 31 July for the third quarter and first nine months of FY2014 reveals a 9 percent increase in unit sales and net revenues when compared with the third quarter of the previous year.

The female condom designed to be worn inside the birth canal to prevent semen getting to the womb; helps prevent HIV/AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases, and unintended pregnancy.

According to company representatives, unlike the male condom, FC2 puts power back in the hands of women as it provides an option for protection, which they can initiate. “Women can insert the FC2 hours ahead of the sex which allows for spontaneity.”

Director of programme development for the Female Health Company and a major advocate for the usage of female condoms, Lucie van Mens who was expected at the 2014 AIDS conference lost her life on the doomed flight MH17 that was shot down over the Ukraine airspace by rebels. Her colleagues paying tribute said they would continue to push the case of female condoms forward in memory of van Mens.

Though its usage is on the rise among females world wide, unless sold to users in Nigeria at subsidized prices FC2 can cost up to 20 times more than male condoms because it is manufactured from polyurethane and not latex like the condoms for men.

Also many women complain that the product is not as widely accessible as the male condom. In 2013, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), donated four million female condoms to the Society for Family Health in Nigeria.

Clinical studies in the United States and Japan show that the Female Condom is 95 to 98 percent effective when used correctly and records of failure, according to the Company, are associated with improper insertion or usage by women.

“The Company sold 13.7 million FC2 Female Condoms, generating $7.9 million in net revenues, during the three months ended June 30, 2014, representing a 9 percent increase in unit sales and net revenues when compared with the third quarter of the previous year,” stated Karen King, President and CEO of The Female Health Company.

King described the firm’s overall financial performance for the third quarter as solid noting that although nine month earnings trailed prior year levels, the Company once again maintained profitability, generating positive cash flow from operations, and remained debt-free.

During the first nine months of Fiscal 2014, the Company sold 32.8 million FC2 Female Condoms, generating $18.9 million in net revenues.

The CEO however notes, ” while we are very pleased to report a strong third quarter, the market we serve continues to be subject to quarterly volatility in purchase patterns of the global public health sector.”

The Female Health Company is based in Chicago, Illinois and began distributing FC2 in 2007, shipping to 144 countries. The FC2 Female Condom(R) is the only currently available female-controlled product approved by FDA that offers dual protection against sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, and unintended pregnancy. The World Health Organization (WHO) has cleared FC2 for purchase by U.N. agencies.

 

Ameto Akpe