By Ngoc Hung - The Saigon Times Daily
HCMC – National Veterinary Company (Navetco) has got approval from relevant authorities to produce bird-flu vaccines in order to replace imports in the near future, said the company’s general director.
Pham Quang Thai said the Scientific Council of the Veterinary Department had allowed his company to manufacture H5N1-type bird-flu vaccines. “The monthly production capacity of H5N1-type vaccines at Navetco is ten million doses which will be released onto the market next month,” Thai asserted.
Thai on Tuesday told the Daily that the nation needed about 200 million doses of H5N1 vaccines a year. Navetco thus has invested to build a new vaccine production line to ensure sufficient supply for the local demand, he revealed.
Vietnam targets to be self-sufficient in bird-flu vaccines with lower prices than the imported drug. Currently, Chinese vaccines are priced at between VND300 and VND350 a dose here in Vietnam.
Thai also said vaccines produced by Navetco would be more efficient in fighting bird flu in the southern region and part of the north and central region.
“In the coming time, Navetco will manufacture vaccines for fighting other bird-flu viruses,” Thai stated.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development estimated the need for bird-flu vaccines this year at some 327 million doses. The ministry now has 50 million doses of vaccine imported, mostly from China, in support of provinces fighting against the current bird-flu outbreaks.