Bayer HealthCare to sell selected equine products to Merial

Bayer HealthCare has announced that it will be selling of its equine health assets to fellow veterinary products manufacturer Merial.

The first of these assets is hyaluronate sodium, an injectable solution that treats noninfectious joint dysfunction in horses and has been marketed worldwide for more than two decades as Legend or Hyonate.

It will also be transferring rights to the Marquis antiprotozoal oral paste, which has been marketed in North America for more than a decade as a treatment for equine protozoal myeloencephalitis.

The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015. According to Bayer, the products are no longer strategically relevant to the company, representing less than two percent of its worldwide sales.

Dr Dirk Ehle, head of Bayer HealthCare's animal health division, said: "This transaction will allow our business to focus on innovation and growth in core segments for both companion and farm animals."

Merial says the agreement will further broaden its portfolio of leading products to improve the health and performance of horses.