Improvements to Butantan vaccine factory delay production

Construction of the Butantan Biological Institute’s new vaccine facility — initially slated to be delivered in September 2021 — is finally complete. However, vaccine production is unlikely to begin on schedule.

While the building is already available, Butantan says that it still requires furnishing with health equipment, which may take time as most of the machinery must be imported from abroad. Designed to produce the Coronavac Covid-19 vaccine, the new facility will manufacture another seven vaccines, including jabs for rabies and hepatitis.

The new facility was made possible after Butantan received BRL 189 million (USD 34.22 million) in funding from 35 different companies. The new factory makes use of an unfinished building originally intended for the production of hemoderivatives.

• #sãoPaulo
• #vaccine