Takeda Gets Japanese Pandemic Flu Vaccine Subsidy

The Japanese government is providing Takeda with a $70.3 million subsidy to bolster its vaccine production facilities in the event of an influenza pandemic.

The Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency approved the company’s NDA to manufacture an H5N1-and-prototype vaccine in Hikari last month. H5N1 strains are considered the most likely to cause a pandemic, according to the World Health Organization.

Takeda said the subsidy will help it boost its vaccine supply by about 8 million, for a total of 33 million doses.

This is the third flu vaccine-related government subsidy Takeda has received. Earlier subsidies of $23.4 million in 2009 and $233.6 million in 2011 were used to develop a state-of-the-art cell-culture influenza vaccine manufacturing facility in Hikari on the main island of Honshu.

In between those two grants, Takeda gained exclusive Japanese marketing rights to Baxter’s cell-culture pandemic influenza vaccine technology. The two drugmakers also collaborated on development and manufacturing facilities to establish a Japanese supply source.  — Lena Freund

Subscribe to Drug Industry Daily for complete coverage of the pharmaceutical industry. Click here for more information.