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Merck opens China's 1st biosafety testing agency in Zhangjiang

english.pudong.gov.cn Updated:2022-09-26

Global pharmaceutical giant Merck opened China's first biosafety testing agency in Pudong New Area's Zhangjiang, which is located in East China's Shanghai, on Sept 21.

The new project, with a total investment of 29 million euros ($28.36 million), was designed to offer testing services to Chinese biopharmaceutical companies and contract development manufacturing organizations, or CDMOs.

The first phase of the project has started operations, and the second phase is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.

The agency's biosafety laboratory is expected to be another key global network for the company apart from those in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Singapore.

According to official data from the global research institution - Global Market Insights, the scale of the global biosecurity testing market will reach $5 billion in 2025, and the figure is expected to exceed $10 billion in 2030.

Marc Jaffre, managing director of Merck's life science business sector in China, said that it is a very complicated process for a new drug to go from the research stage, undergo clinical trials, receive market approval and finally reach the production stage. The process of biosafety testing plays a crucial role in the research and development of a new drug.

The new biosafety testing agency in Zhangjiang is expected to help shorten the entire drug approval procedures, and reduce the time and costs for pharmaceutical companies.