Janssen vaccine maker considers closing Bern factory

Janssen plant in Bern threatened with closure, 300 employees affected Keystone-SDA

Vaccine developer Janssen is considering closing its factory in the Swiss capital Bern. On Tuesday it opened a consultation procedure with employees to find alternatives. Up to 300 employees could be affected by a plant closure.

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The subsidiary of US pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson said on Tuesday that it was considering closing the Bern plant for two reasons. Firstly, a new vaccine designed to prevent colibacillus infections is not as effective as hoped.

Secondly, the production of lentiviral vectors will soon cease in Bern. The global company Johnson & Johnson is about to inaugurate a new, much larger plant in the Netherlands, according to a press release.

The factory that houses Janssen’s operations in Bern has a long history. It was founded in 1898 as the Swiss Institute of Serotherapy and Vaccination.

Translated from German by DeepL/jdp

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