The story of Haver Farma İlaç begins in 1888, when a pharmacist of Greek origin, Hristo Xanthopoulos, relocated his pharmacy from Kantarcılar to a location known as İskele Passage in Çengelköy. In 1910, the pharmacy was transferred to Atanas Karayanides. In 1915, Ömer Hikmet Bey (Güneyman, 1894–1959), a graduate of the School of Pharmacy, took over the pharmacy, which had been operating for 27 years, and reopened it under the name “Çengelköy Pharmacy.” This location also became the young pharmacist’s first laboratory.

In 1917, Ömer Hikmet Bey began producing medical preparations there. After marrying Haver Hanım in 1918, he renamed the laboratory “Haver Laboratory.” By 1923, he had fully shifted his focus to the production of medical preparations. During this period, he transferred ownership of his pharmacy to Hacı Abdullah Hekiman and moved the laboratory to a mansion built by his father. Operating under the name “Haver Medical Preparations Laboratory,” it served for many years on Kule Hospital Street. As the need for additional production space arose, a new building was constructed next to the mansion, where the production of medical ampoules and tablets began.

In 1947, the laboratory was passed on to the next generation. Rasin Güneyman, a recent graduate of the School of Pharmacy, took over the laboratory on August 19, 1948, after completing an internship with his father. From then on, the responsibility for Haver Laboratory rested entirely with Rasin Güneyman. Rasin and his brother Mehmet Zeki Güneyman (1932–2009) worked together until 1969, continuing production. In 1970, Mehmet Zeki Bey established Galen İlaç Sanayii and parted ways with Haver. In 1978, Selçuk Camcı, who was supplying corrugated cardboard boxes to Haver İlaç that year, met Rasin Güneyman. Due to problems like foreign currency shortages and union issues, production had come to a halt. Rasin offered Selçuk a partnership, and Selçuk took over operations. This marked the beginning of a revival and rapid growth. Two laboratories—TEMS in Şişli and Dinçel in Bahçelievler—were acquired, with their equipment and licenses integrated into Haver’s operations.

Production continued in Çengelköy until 1982, when the mansion and its land were acquired by the military. The facility had to be evacuated and relocated. Haver moved to its new location in Akbaba Village, Beykoz, and continued to take solid steps toward growth. In 1983, a bottle serum production line was launched. In 1991, a modern ampoule production line began operations, marking the first production of empty ampoules. In 2001, the first PVC bag was produced with domestic financing, followed by the licensing and production of the first locally developed feeding solution in 2003. The first production of serum bag components took place in 2007.

What started as a small neighborhood pharmacy had now begun to evolve into an international organization. Following significant technical investments, the next step was expansion through exports. In 2014, North Macedonia became the first country to which products were exported, with additional countries soon following. In 2019, Haver Farma launched its first consumer health product, Propolsave. In 2020, a Research and Development Center was established at Marmara University Technopark. In 2022, the Turkish subsidiary of MS Pharma was acquired, and production began under the name Haver Trakya.

This text was written by the researcher and author Mr. Mert Sandalcı.