Korea Bio Association Invites Australian Delegation... Tour of Domestic Bio Production Facilities

Seeking Mutual Research Collaboration Plans by Visiting Samsung Biologics and Celltrion

Australian delegation visiting Samsung Biologics.
[Photo by Korea Bio Association]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The Korea Bio Association announced on the 2nd that, together with the Trade and Investment Office of the Australian Embassy in Korea, it invited the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and more than 10 research institutions from Australia to Korea to tour domestic bio production facilities and explore mutual research cooperation methods.

The Australian delegation, which visited Korea for four days from November 28 to December 1, included about 20 people such as policy experts, clinical trial specialists, professional researchers, and university officials, including the mRNA Victoria Vaccine and Therapeutics R&D Project Group, which is pursuing cooperation with Moderna and BioNTech.

The delegation visited association member companies such as Samsung Biologics and Celltrion to discuss cooperation plans between Korean companies and Australian research institutions. They also toured excellent bio production technologies and facilities of Korean companies, including R&D centers and production facilities.

At Samsung Biologics, they toured the Contract Manufacturing Organization (CMO) production facilities and received an overview, current status, and information on the recently established COVID-19 mRNA vaccine manufacturing plant related to the Contract Development Organization (CDO) business launched in 2018, learning the know-how of achieving economies of scale in a short time.

Additionally, at Celltrion, they learned about the development process of the world's first biosimilar 'Remsima' and toured the biosimilar manufacturing facility (Plant 2). They also shared information on cooperation cases and business strategies in the Australian market with Celltrion Healthcare's Australian branch, a group affiliate.

Hwang Juri, head of the Exchange and Cooperation Team at the Korea Bio Association, said, "Due to the impact of COVID-19, partnering with overseas bio companies has always been insufficient as it was conducted only in a non-face-to-face format. We will devise various methods to facilitate cooperation between domestic companies and not only this Australian delegation but also other overseas bio companies and institutions when they visit Korea."