Bavarian Nordic pledges 2 million doses of monkeypox vaccine to the EU

Bavarian Nordic has been working on a monkeypox vaccine that has come under high demand from several governments, leading to the company coming to a supply agreement with The European Union. 

Over the next two years, the Danish company will provide EU member states with doses of their monkeypox vaccine. 

The vaccine is an updated form of the smallpox vaccine, Bavarian Nordic has worked with the US government to develop freeze-dried technology using the MVA-BN^® smallpox/monkeypox vaccine. 

In freeze-drying as opposed to having a liquid-frozen form, the vaccine has an increased shelf life and is easier to store and transport, making it more convenient for wider distributuon. 

The deal means that 14 countries, made up of EU member states, western Balkan countries and countries in the European Economic Area will have access to the vaccine.

The company are forecasting that they will be able to distribute 700,000 doses of the vaccine in 2023. 

Since the outbreak started earlier in 2022, there have been over 80,000 reported cases of monkeypox across over 100 countries. 

By having a vaccine developed so quickly, with approval just around the corner, the company are confident in their ability to mitigate further spread of the virus.