The “60 Minutes” news program in Australia recently went behind the scenes at CSL Behring’s Broadmeadows manufacturing facility, where millions of doses of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine are being manufactured for the continent.
Watch the full episode above. If you're in Australia, visit 9Now to see the video.
60 Minutes correspondent Sara Abo interviewed Seqirus General Manager Steve Marlow in the February 7 report about Australia’s response to COVID-19 and the Australian scientists who contributed to the massive scientific undertaking. Seqirus, a business of CSL, is among the world’s leading producers of flu vaccine and has lent its vaccine expertise to the manufacturing project.
CSL is working with AstraZeneca to manufacture 50 million doses of its vaccine candidate with Oxford University to care for the population of Australia. CSL is the only company in Australia making a COVID-19 vaccine.
Also featured in the report were Australian Secretary of the Department of Health, Professor Brendan Murphy, who previously served as Australia’s Chief Medical Officer, and Director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, Dr. Anthony Fauci.
In the interview, Marlow highlighted CSL’s COVID-19 vaccine manufacturing efforts and provided a tour of CSL Behring’s Biotech Manufacturing Facility in Broadmeadows, where the bulk substance is being made before it is transferred to Seqirus’ fill and finish facility in Parkville.
Of the company’s role in the vaccine effort, Marlow told Abo, “I’m just incredibly proud that we can play such an important part in the response.”
The first doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine (AZD1222) are planned for release to Australians in late March 2021.
