Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that Canada will have locally produced vaccines for the new crown to ensure that vaccine supplies are not left to chance.
Trudeau said a National Research Council-owned plant in Royalmount, Manti will produce tens of millions of doses of the Novavax vaccine, giving the country control over the supply of the vaccine. Maryland-based Novavax formally applied for federal approval last week for the new crown vaccine it has developed.
“This is a big step forward in getting a vaccine produced in this country for national vaccination. The more local production we need, the better, to make sure that all of our citizens who want the vaccine get it,” Trudeau said. Trudeau said.
Novavax released data from a later phase of clinical testing that showed the vaccine was 89.3 percent effective, slightly less effective than the Pfizer and Modena vaccines now being used in this country, but also more effective against the new coronavirus variant first identified in the U.K. and better than what other drug companies have developed.
Last summer Trudeau announced a $125 million upgrade to the National Research Council facility to develop a locally produced vaccine. Trudeau said the plant could produce hundreds of thousands of doses of the vaccine in November, but the plan hit a roadblock when the facility was accused of failing to meet strict Good Manufacturing Practices. According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the level of the facility has since been upgraded and now meets the guidelines and is expected to begin production of the new crown vaccine this summer with a monthly output of about 4,000 liters, equivalent to about 2 million doses, CTV reported, adding that the plant is still under construction and will not be ready for production until July at the earliest. The federal government agreed with Novavax in August last year to purchase the vaccine and recently increased its purchase to at least 52 million doses.
On the other hand, Trudeau announced a $25 million grant to Vancouver-based biotech company Precision NanoSystems to build a $50 million production center to produce the new crown vaccine and drug, which is expected to be operational by 2023 and produce up to 240 million doses annually. The federal government has previously invested $18.2 million to test the company’s new vaccine.
The European Union is tightening export restrictions on vaccines, and manufacturers Pfizer and Modena are temporarily reducing the amount of vaccines delivered to the country due to production problems.
Recent Comments