巴西恢复生产胰岛素

 　　RIO DE JANEIRO, April 16 (Xinhua) -- Brazil will resume production of insulin on a large scale after 14 years of depending on imports, Health Minister Alexandre Padilha said on Tuesday.

　　"Today is a historical day. We are showing how important it is for a country of continental¹ dimensions such as Brazil to have its own insulin production," the minister said.

　　The government will invest 430 million reais (215 million U.S. dollars) in the project over the next five years, mostly financed by the Brazilian Development Bank, Padilha said.

　　According to Padilha, a lab in southeastern Minas Gerais state will produce the drug.

　　The move is part of a government strategy to increase the country's independence on drugs and medical equipment.

　　Since 2001, Brazil has depended on imports to provide a regular supply of insulin to diabetics as its insulin-producing lab had been sold to a foreign buyer.

　　"With the insulin being produced abroad, any strategic decision of a company can lead to insecurity in the insulin supply," he said, adding it would be safer for Brazilian patients to depend on insulin domestically produced.

　　The minister said once operational, the new factory is expected to meet half of the needs of the 1.1 million patients, who depend exclusively on insulin distributed by the public healthcare system. Brazil has some 10 million diabetics.

1 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。