Harold Snyder
Encyclopedia
Harold Snyder was an American businessperson who started Biocraft Laboratories, one of the earliest manufacturers of generic drug
s.
and attended Erasmus Hall High School
in Brooklyn
. He attended New York University
for his undergraduate studies and was awarded a master's degree from Columbia University
on 1950, majoring in natural science
.
in 1964 together with his wife Beatrice, who headed the company's financial operations and developed its inventory system. The firm produced antibiotics, such as penicillin
and tetracycline, waiting for the expiration of patents on brand-name medications and then producing generic equivalents at lower prices. existing drugs to expire and then brought their equivalent products to market. Biocraft was listed on the New York Stock Exchange
in 1985, with Snyder stating that it was the first generic drug manufacturer to be listed on the Big Board.
The Snyders played a major role in establishing the standards and approval process with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for generic pharmaceuticals. In 1991, Snyder expressed his concerns regarding FDA approval processes that had multiple chemists raising issues regarding generic versions of brand-name drugs.
The firm was able to produce generic versions of Co-trimoxazole
in 1981, which had been manufactured and sold under the brand names Bactrim and Septra in 1981, with the generics sold for half the price of the brand-name equivalents. Biocraft was albe to use documentation previously prepared by Hoffmann–La Roche and Burroughs Wellcome, the original makers of the two drugs, to cut the cost of creating the processes needed to manufacture generic versions and obtain FDA approval. Burroughs Wellcome filed an appeal of the decision to allow approval of the Biocraft generic versions, with Snyder arguing that "Every day they can keep the generics off the market means more money in their pockets".
The firm opened a plant in Missouri in the 1980s that produced the active ingredients for the company's medications, and shipped these products to the Biocraft facilities in New Jersey for assembly and distribution.
, nitrogen
and other nutrients into the soil to help bacteria naturally present underground to digest the pollutants — which included benzene
, methylene chloride, toluene
and xylene
— with carbon dioxide
and water as the main byproducts, using a small pump house, two tanks and a network of pipes under the ground to implement the process. In the early 1980s, Snyder reported that the process had been used to successfully treat a soil sample from the Lipari landfill
in Bridgeport, New Jersey
, one of the state's most contaminated sites and had been unofficially approved by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
for use at the Biocraft spill. Snyder estimated that the new method had purified five million gallons of contaminated water in three years at a cost of $80,000 compared to more than $2 million for traditional methods which would have taken years more to complete. Snyder patented the process in 1983, but did not develop the method on a commercial basis. Other bioremediation
systems that use plants and microorganisms to cleanup contaminants have been widely used since.
in 1996 in exchange for stock. Snyder was named a director at Teva. In 1997, he established HBJ Investments to invest in medical technology and pharmaceutical companies.
, Snyder died at age 86 on December 18, 2008 in Manhattan due to respiratory failure
. His first wife, Beatrice, died in 1998, when they had been living in Cliffside Park, New Jersey
. Snyder was survived by his second wife, Tamar, three children Beryl, Brian and Jay and six grandchildren.
Generic drug
A generic drug is a drug defined as "a drug product that is comparable to brand/reference listed drug product in dosage form, strength, route of administration, quality and performance characteristics, and intended use." It has also been defined as a term referring to any drug marketed under its...
s.
Early life and education
Snyder was born in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
and attended Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall High School
Erasmus Hall Campus High School is a four-year public high school in the New York City borough of Brooklyn, United States operated by the New York City Department of Education....
in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. He attended New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
for his undergraduate studies and was awarded a master's degree from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
on 1950, majoring in natural science
Natural science
The natural sciences are branches of science that seek to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world by using empirical and scientific methods...
.
Biocraft Laboratories
He founded Biocraft Laboratories in Fair Lawn, New JerseyFair Lawn, New Jersey
Fair Lawn is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States and a suburban municipality in the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 32,457. Fair Lawn was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March...
in 1964 together with his wife Beatrice, who headed the company's financial operations and developed its inventory system. The firm produced antibiotics, such as penicillin
Penicillin
Penicillin is a group of antibiotics derived from Penicillium fungi. They include penicillin G, procaine penicillin, benzathine penicillin, and penicillin V....
and tetracycline, waiting for the expiration of patents on brand-name medications and then producing generic equivalents at lower prices. existing drugs to expire and then brought their equivalent products to market. Biocraft was listed on the New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
in 1985, with Snyder stating that it was the first generic drug manufacturer to be listed on the Big Board.
The Snyders played a major role in establishing the standards and approval process with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for generic pharmaceuticals. In 1991, Snyder expressed his concerns regarding FDA approval processes that had multiple chemists raising issues regarding generic versions of brand-name drugs.
The firm was able to produce generic versions of Co-trimoxazole
Co-trimoxazole
Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole or co-trimoxazole is a sulfonamide antibiotic combination of trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole, in the ratio of 1 to 5, used in the treatment of a variety of bacterial infections.The name co-trimoxazole is the British Approved Name, and has been marketed worldwide...
in 1981, which had been manufactured and sold under the brand names Bactrim and Septra in 1981, with the generics sold for half the price of the brand-name equivalents. Biocraft was albe to use documentation previously prepared by Hoffmann–La Roche and Burroughs Wellcome, the original makers of the two drugs, to cut the cost of creating the processes needed to manufacture generic versions and obtain FDA approval. Burroughs Wellcome filed an appeal of the decision to allow approval of the Biocraft generic versions, with Snyder arguing that "Every day they can keep the generics off the market means more money in their pockets".
The firm opened a plant in Missouri in the 1980s that produced the active ingredients for the company's medications, and shipped these products to the Biocraft facilities in New Jersey for assembly and distribution.
Bioemediation
After a pipe burst at the company's New Jersey facilities, 33,000 gallons of chemicals contaminated the soil and groundwater at the site. Together with his employees, Snyder developed a technique to pump magnesiumMagnesium
Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
, nitrogen
Nitrogen
Nitrogen is a chemical element that has the symbol N, atomic number of 7 and atomic mass 14.00674 u. Elemental nitrogen is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, and mostly inert diatomic gas at standard conditions, constituting 78.08% by volume of Earth's atmosphere...
and other nutrients into the soil to help bacteria naturally present underground to digest the pollutants — which included benzene
Benzene
Benzene is an organic chemical compound. It is composed of 6 carbon atoms in a ring, with 1 hydrogen atom attached to each carbon atom, with the molecular formula C6H6....
, methylene chloride, toluene
Toluene
Toluene, formerly known as toluol, is a clear, water-insoluble liquid with the typical smell of paint thinners. It is a mono-substituted benzene derivative, i.e., one in which a single hydrogen atom from the benzene molecule has been replaced by a univalent group, in this case CH3.It is an aromatic...
and xylene
Xylene
Xylene encompasses three isomers of dimethylbenzene. The isomers are distinguished by the designations ortho- , meta- , and para- , which specify to which carbon atoms the two methyl groups are attached...
— with carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
and water as the main byproducts, using a small pump house, two tanks and a network of pipes under the ground to implement the process. In the early 1980s, Snyder reported that the process had been used to successfully treat a soil sample from the Lipari landfill
Lipari Landfill
The Lipari Landill is an inactive landfill on a former gravel pit in Mantua Township, New Jersey, USA, that was used from 1958 to 1971 as a dump site for household and industrial wastes. Toxic organic compounds and heavy metals dumped at the site have percolated into the ground water and leached...
in Bridgeport, New Jersey
Bridgeport, New Jersey
Bridgeport is an unincorporated area within Logan Township, located in Gloucester County, New Jersey. The area is served as United States Postal Service ZIP Code 08014....
, one of the state's most contaminated sites and had been unofficially approved by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection is a government agency in the U.S. state of New Jersey that is responsible for managing the state's natural resources and addressing issues related to pollution...
for use at the Biocraft spill. Snyder estimated that the new method had purified five million gallons of contaminated water in three years at a cost of $80,000 compared to more than $2 million for traditional methods which would have taken years more to complete. Snyder patented the process in 1983, but did not develop the method on a commercial basis. Other bioremediation
Bioremediation
Bioremediation is the use of microorganism metabolism to remove pollutants. Technologies can be generally classified as in situ or ex situ. In situ bioremediation involves treating the contaminated material at the site, while ex situ involves the removal of the contaminated material to be treated...
systems that use plants and microorganisms to cleanup contaminants have been widely used since.
Teva Pharmaceutical
With annual sales of $150 million at the time, Biocraft was taken over by Teva Pharmaceutical IndustriesTeva Pharmaceutical Industries
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. , is an international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Petah Tikva, Israel. It specializes in generic and proprietary pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients...
in 1996 in exchange for stock. Snyder was named a director at Teva. In 1997, he established HBJ Investments to invest in medical technology and pharmaceutical companies.
Death
A resident of Manhattan and Westhampton, New YorkWesthampton, New York
Westhampton is a hamlet in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The population was 2,869 at the 2000 census.Westhampton is in the Town of Southampton.-Geography:Westhampton is located at ....
, Snyder died at age 86 on December 18, 2008 in Manhattan due to respiratory failure
Respiratory failure
The term respiratory failure, in medicine, is used to describe inadequate gas exchange by the respiratory system, with the result that arterial oxygen and/or carbon dioxide levels cannot be maintained within their normal ranges. A drop in blood oxygenation is known as hypoxemia; a rise in arterial...
. His first wife, Beatrice, died in 1998, when they had been living in Cliffside Park, New Jersey
Cliffside Park, New Jersey
Cliffside Park is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 23,594....
. Snyder was survived by his second wife, Tamar, three children Beryl, Brian and Jay and six grandchildren.