Medicine Inventory
9 min read
Updated: 2026-02-05
How to Manage Medicine Expiry in a Medical Store
Expired medicines account for ₹30,000 to ₹1,50,000 in annual profit leakage for an average Indian pharmacy. Here is how to eliminate expiry losses systematically.
Key Takeaways for Pharmacy Owners
- Adopt FEFO (First Expiry, First Out) instead of FIFO (First In, First Out).
- Conduct weekly rolling audits of medicines with less than 90 days of shelf life.
- Negotiate firm distributor return windows (typically 60 to 90 days before expiry date).
1. The True Cost of Expired Medicines
When a strip of medicine expires on your shelf, you do not just lose your profit margin—you lose 100% of the purchase price (PTR) paid to the distributor, plus the storage space and working capital locked up for months.
2. Implementing FEFO Batch Dispensing
Never dispense medicines based on which box arrived first in your store (FIFO). Always dispense based on which batch expires first (FEFO). Modern software like MyMBill automatically prioritizes the nearest expiry batch at checkout.
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