- Biopharma News

Spanish CDMO Reig Jofre to manufacture Janssen COVID-19 vaccine candidate

15 Dec 2020

The company will be responsible for the formulation, filling, and packaging of Ad26.COV2-S at its new €30 million injectable products plant in Barcelona

Reig Jofre has signed up with Johnson & Johnson unit, Janssen, to execute the technology transfer to manufacture its investigational COVID-19 vaccine candidate, Ad26.COV2-S.

The Spanish contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) is expected to produce its first batches of this vaccine candidate, presuming approval by appropriate health authorities.

Specifically, the company will be responsible for the formulation, filling, and packaging of the vaccine candidate, which will then be distributed by Janssen.

In 2018, Reig Jofre invested €30 million in building a new injectable products plant in Barcelona to triple existing capacity — to satisfy the increasing demand for its products, the development of new markets internationally, and the growth of contract manufacturing for third parties — and boost its efficiency.

Part of the investment included installing cutting-edge isolator technology and highly automated processes to guarantee the quality and safety of aseptic production.

The project candidate entails additional investment, which is already underway, to ensure the new facility complies with the biosafety levels required by the Ad26.COV2-S vaccine candidate.

Ignasi Biosca, CEO of RJofre, said: “We are proud to see that the sustained effort of Reig Jofre to invest in technology and industrial capabilities will now be decisive for contributing to deploy COVID-19 vaccine into a large number of countries.”