Novo Nordisk was formed in 1989 by merging Novo Industri with which Danish company?

Novo Nordisk was formed in 1989 by merging Novo Industri with Nordisk Gentofte.

The two Danish companies had competed for decades in diabetes care and insulin production. Novo Industri was founded by the brothers Harald Pedersen and Thorvald Pedersen, while Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium was established earlier by August Krogh, Marie Krogh, and Hans Christian Hagedorn. Their separate research and manufacturing traditions shaped Denmark’s pharmaceutical industry.

The merger created Novo Nordisk A/S, combining complementary strengths in insulin, diabetes treatment, and biotechnology. The company later expanded into treatments for obesity and other chronic conditions.

The name Nordisk Gentofte can cause confusion because the older company was commonly known as Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium and had ties to the Copenhagen suburb of Gentofte. The 1989 merger was not a takeover by one rival; it joined two historically important Danish insulin businesses under one corporate group.