Fiocruz releases first 100% Brazilian COVID-19 vaccine

Brazil’s Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), through the Immunobiological Technology Institute (Biomanguinhos), provides the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine (recombinant) produced with the national Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API). The first batch of national vaccines was released by the internal quality control of Bio-Manguinhos earlier this month.

“The release of the first 100% Brazilian COVID-19 vaccines, now available to the Ministry of Health, is a milestone in Brazilian self-sufficiency and the strengthening of the Health Economic-Industrial Complex (CEIS in the Portuguese acronym). Having carried out a technology transfer of this size in such a short period of time to respond to a health emergency only reaffirms the strategic role of public institutions such as Fiocruz for the development of the country and guaranteeing equitable access to public assets,” commented the president of Fiocruz, Nisia Trindade Lima.

The approximately 550,000 doses made available are already part of Fiocruz's deliveries contracted by the Ministry of Health (MS) for 2022. In total, the Ministry contracted 105 million doses of vaccine from the Foundation for this year, of which 45 million doses of the national vaccine. The immunizers will be delivered according to the agreed schedule and demand established by the MS. Fiocruz has already produced an amount of national API equivalent to about 25 million doses of vaccine, of which 2.6 million doses have been bottled, including the 550,000 doses made available. The others (about 2 million) are in different stages of release.