Drug giant Novo Nordisk, which operates a huge insulin production plant in Johnston County and is the world’s largest insulin producer, says it is laying off 1,000 workers.

The company cited “a challenging competitive environment, especially in its large US market.”

Most of the cuts will be made in Denmark, where the company is based, according to a statement made Thursday.

How many jobs might be lost in Clayton or the U.S. was not specified.

(Note: WRAL TechWire has reached out to two company representatives for comment. This report will be updated if additional details are provided.)

In March, Novo Nordisk announced a $1.85 billion expansion and the addition of some 100 jobs at the Clayton operation. In August 2015, the company said it would add nearly 700 jobs as part of iexpansion plans announced at that time.

No open jobs are available in Clayton, according to a check of the Novo Nordisk website made early Thursday.

According to a recent report by Bloomberg news, Novo Nordisk lost a “sizable” contract for NovoLog, its best-selling insulin product as competition increases, driving down prices.

“We deeply regret that good colleagues stand to lose their jobs, and it has been a difficult decision to make,” said CEO Lars Rebien Sørensen in the layoff announcement. “However, we have concluded that it is needed in order for us to have a sustainable balance between income and costs. In the current situation, we have to prioritize investments in key product launches that will bring innovation to patients and drive our future growth.”

Sorensen had told Bloomberg about the lost contract in August. The news ignited the largest sell-off of Novo Nordisk stock in more than three years, Bloomberg noted.

The Copenhagen-based company said the layoffs will affect its research and development departments, headquarters staff functions and global commercial organization.

“That they cut hard in R&D poses a risk in the long term, as in whether they can keep momentum going. They are messing with their life-blood which means that there isn’t much fat left to cut off,” Alm. Brand analyst Michael Friis Jorgensen told the Reuters news service.

Novo Nordisk currently employs some 42,300 people in 75 countries and markets its products in more than 180 countries.

Approximately half of Novo Nordisk revenues come from the U.S. Bloomberg noted that “prices have been squeezed by pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) who administer drug benefits for employers and health plans.”

The Wall Street Journal also reported that a new insulin product called Tresiba in the U.S. faces impending competition from a forthcoming lower-cost “copycat” product from Eli Lilly & Co. Tresiba also competes against Lantus, an insulin product made by Sanofi, the WSJ noted.

Sorensen is leaving the company in January, according to an announcement made earlier this month. Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, who is now executive vice president and head of corporate development, is to replace him, according to Reuters.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)