(Ottawa) The Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, François-Philippe Champagne, says he is “in solution mode” to protect the jobs of the Quebec biopharmaceutical company Medicago after the announcement of the end of all its activities.
The company’s parent company, Mitsubishi Chemical Group, said on Thursday that it made the decision “in light of the significant changes that have taken place in the COVID-19 vaccine scene since the authorization of Covifenz [vaccin contre la COVID-19 conçu par Medicago] “.
Asked about this Friday during question period in the House of Commons, Mr. Champagne said he did not intend to spare his efforts to protect jobs and intellectual property related to the production of this vaccine.
“We are now working to preserve jobs, to preserve technology and intellectual property. This is the priority today. We are in solution mode. [Jeudi], I have been in contact with the mayor of Quebec, our colleagues from the Government of Quebec. I was even in contact with the president of Mitsubishi in Japan. […] The priority today is the people of Quebec. We will be in solution mode for the next few weeks, ”said Minister François-Philippe Champagne.
In February 2022, Health Canada approved the Covifenz vaccine, the first in the world to be produced from plants. A month later, however, the World Health Organization (WHO) rejected the vaccine because of Medicago’s ties to the tobacco industry.
The tobacco company Philip Morris, which was a minority shareholder in Medicago with a 21% stake, subsequently sold its shares.
However, the federal government had signed a contract to buy up to 76 million doses with vaccine donation projects for low-income countries, but these were not allowed without WHO approval.
“Following a comprehensive analysis of the current global demand, the economic context for COVID-19 vaccines and the challenges Medicago faces in its transition to commercial production, the group has decided not to continue marketing Covifenz,” Mitsubishi Chemical Group said in a statement Thursday.
The Conservative MP for the Quebec region, Gérard Deltell, argued that the Trudeau government had shown “negligence” in this file by injecting public funds into a company in which one of the shareholders was the tobacco company Philip Morris.
“Perhaps we should have been in verification mode rather than today being in solution mode. In 2003, the WHO defined that no recognition was given to companies that were owned by shareholders who are tobacco companies. This is exactly the case with Medicago. It doesn’t make sense. It was already known since 2003 that this could not pass, ”argued Mr. Deltell.
On Thursday, Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos and Minister François-Philippe Champagne said they were disappointed with Mitsubishi Chemicals’ decision.
Mr. Champagne’s press officer, Laurie Bouchard, highlighted Medicago’s contribution to the life sciences sector through its plant-based vaccine.
“We expect the cooperation of all parties involved to ensure that Canadian interests are protected in accordance with legal and contractual obligations. [de Medicago] to the Government of Canada,” she said.
“And we will continue to ensure that we have sufficient domestic vaccine production capacity to protect against infectious disease threats and future pandemics. »
Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, whose riding is located in Quebec City, said he would “work with the Government of Quebec and the region’s economic leaders, particularly those in the life sciences”, to also “protect workers and identify options for the future”.
The office of the Minister of Economy, Innovation and Energy of Quebec, Pierre Fitzgibbon, indicated for its part that it would work together with Ottawa and Mitsubishi Chemical Group in order to find a buyer for the facilities of Medicago.
The 74.5 million loan granted to the company in 2015 by Quebec for the construction of a 245 million complex on avenue D’Estimauville, a project announced in 2018 whose inauguration was still awaited, will be reimbursed , said Mr. Fitzgibbon’s press secretary, Mathieu St-Amand.
“The technology developed by Medicago is important for the life sciences sector and we will work with our partners to keep the expertise and the workers in Quebec,” he added.
Passing through Toronto, the Minister of Finance, Eric Girard, said he was “optimistic that we will find solutions”. “We have to find a buyer. There is expertise there, and that’s what we want to keep, ”he said.
Founded in 1999, Medicago employed more than 600 people in its facilities in Quebec, Durham (in North Carolina) and Toronto, could we read on its website Thursday evening.
With Mylène Crête and Tommy Chouinard, The Press