Quebec vaccine developer Medicago parts ways with tobacco giant
The Montreal-based COVID-19 vaccine developer Medicago has parted ways with tobacco giant Philip Morris.
The Quebec government said in June that it would help the company replace Philip Morris as a shareholder.
Medicago Inc. majority owner Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma announced on Monday that it has removed Philip Morris as a secondary investor following the World Health Organization's rejection of Medicago's Covifenz vaccine in March due to the corporate ties.
It is news that anti-smoking advocates are applauding.
"Tobacco corporations, vaccines and governments don't mix well and we applaud the expulsion of Philip Morris from the Medicago collaboration," said Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) executive director Les Hagen. "However, the control of one pandemic should not come at the expense of another. We are relieved that Canadian governments have washed their hands of this unethical and embarrassing collaboration with a tobacco giant."
The Covifenz vaccine is the only one manufactured in Canada, which invested $173 million in the company in 2020. Health Canada licensed the jab for adults in February.
Mitsubishi is a 79 per cent shareholder in Medicago and the Marlboro producer - Philip Morris - owned the balance. Mitsubishi now owns 100 per cent of the company.
Philip Morris said in a statement that Medicago being owned by a single shareholder is the most "appropriate way forward."
"We have long believed in the public health potential of Medicago's innovative approach for developing new plant-based vaccines and we hope this potential is realized for the benefit of global public health," said spokesperson Corey Henry in an email.
The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) prohibits tobacco industry players from collaborating in participating countries.
ASH says Canada has been defying this treaty by not avoiding tobacco industry interference.
"Now that Philip Morris has been ejected from this collaboration, we urge Canadian governments to fully comply with the treaty by closing the barn door on any future tobacco industry partnerships," said Corporate Accountability's tobacco campaign director Daniel Dorado. "The WHO FCTC is intended to shield governments from tobacco industry influence and collusion. We encourage all countries to meet their obligations under this important public health treaty to prevent any future industry manipulation and interference. Canada is viewed as a world leader in tobacco control. If Canada is vulnerable to tobacco industry interference, then so are many other countries."
Health Canada spokesperson Mark Johnson said that the agreement was not violated and that it "studied the matter of its investment in Medicago carefully and considers that it is compliant with its treaty obligations."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Parents of infant who died in wrong-way crash on Ontario's Hwy. 401 were in same vehicle
Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit has released new details about a wrong-way collision in Whitby on Monday night that claimed the lives of four people.
Three Quebec men from same family father hundreds of children
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
'What have we done?' Lawyer describes shock at possible role in Trump's 2016 victory
A lawyer who negotiated a pair of hush money deals at the centre of Donald Trump's criminal trial recalled Thursday his "gallows humor" reaction to Trump's 2016 election victory and the realization that his hidden-hand efforts might have contributed to the win.
B.C. mayor stripped of budget, barred from committees over Indigenous residential schools book
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Loblaw leaders call criticism 'misguided,' say they aren't to blame for high food prices
Loblaw chairman Galen Weston and the company's new CEO are pushing back against critics who blame the grocery giant for soaring food prices, as a month-long boycott of the retailer gets underway.
'Giant-killer' Kazushi Kimura to race in Kentucky Derby this weekend: 'I'm representing Canada and Japan'
Six years ago, at age 18, Kazushi Kimura left his home and family behind in Hokkaido, Japan to chase a dream. This weekend, he'll ride in the Kentucky Derby.
Orangutan observed treating wound using medicinal plant in world first
Scientists working in Indonesia have observed an orangutan intentionally treating a wound on their face with a medicinal plant, the first time this behavior has been documented.
Quebec premier asks police to dismantle camp at McGill University
Quebec Premier Francois Legault has called on the police to dismantle the pro-Palestinian protest encampment on the lower field of McGill University's downtown campus in Montreal.
TD Bank hit with $9.2M penalty after failing to report suspicious transactions
Canada’s financial-crime watchdog has levied a $9.2-million penalty against The Toronto-Dominion Bank for non-compliance with money laundering and terrorist financing measures as the bank also faces compliance investigations in the U.S.