Sanofi-Aventis To Give Pandemic Flu Vaccine To WHO

Sanofi also plans to sell additional quantities of pandemic flu vaccines at a discounted price to developing countries, as production capacity allows. Rival drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline PLC of Britain also has said it will do that, and has offered to donate 50 million doses of vaccine against swine flu to the WHO for distribution in developing countries.

The bird flu virus has not spread much among humans, but last year appeared capable of creating a pandemic, leading pharmaceutical companies to make vaccine against it. Millions of doses of bird flu vaccine have been stockpiled by Western governments.

Viehbacher said the two viruses now are circulating in many countries, including some of the world's poorest regions.

"This flexible donation aims to help the WHO address the needs of these most vulnerable populations," he said.

Sanofi-Aventis, through its Sanofi Pasteur division based in Swiftwater, Pennsylvania, is the world's biggest vaccine maker. The company has two vaccine manufacturing plants there and one in Val de Reuil, France, all of which can switch from seasonal flu vaccine production to pandemic flu vaccine production.

The three plants have a total annual vaccine production capacity of about 270 million doses. Sanofi-Aventis spokeswoman Marisol Peron said Wednesday that the swine flu vaccine donation will be made over multiple years.