1 million litres of disinfectant gel thanks to successful cooperation between government and industry

With an additional production capacity of more than one million litres of hydroalcoholic gel, chemical, pharmaceutical and food companies, in close cooperation with the federal government, solved the impending shortage of hand disinfectant gel that existed at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Thanks to the rapid approval of temporary authorisations and the increase in production, health care institutions and companies were able to obtain sufficient hydroalcoholic hand gel and disinfectant products to protect their workers against the coronavirus.

Both alcohol and gels for sanitising the hands and disinfectants for thoroughly cleaning the workplace and hospital rooms play a crucial role in the fight against the coronavirus. That is why it is extremely important that health care institutions, companies, and security services such as the police, have a sufficiently large stock.

More flexible authorisation procedures and intersectoral collaboration have resolved the shortage of hydroalcoholic gel

Thanks to excellent cooperation between government and industry, coordinated by the federal task force, companies from different sectors joined forces in March and April 2020.

More than 100 companies, including breweries and distilleries, but also chemical and pharmaceutical companies, were granted temporary permission by the government to produce disinfectants via a fast-track procedure, whilst existing detergent producers significantly increased their production.

1 million litres of hand sanitiser gel, 5 million litres of disinfectants

This is how an extra production capacity of more than one million litres of hand sanitising gel was achieved in a short period of time. For disinfectants, the original producers and temporary permit holders produced a total of 5 million litres of additional products. Many companies also donated hand gels and disinfectants to hospitals and care facilities.